Life of the Pack : Formation
by loonie lupin
Summary: Part 1 of 4. Season 2 AU. After the end of S1, Derek makes some efforts to bring the pack together and they reunite to fight both Gerard and the Kanima.
1. Prologue

**Title: **Life of the Pack – Formation

**Chapter**: prologue/12 (+epilogue) for this part

**Author: **lisapahud (loonie_lupin)

**Fandom: **Teen Wolf

**Characters/pairing** : Derek/Stiles, Scott/Allison, hints of Lydia/Jackson for this part  
**Rating: **PG  
**Summary: **Season 2 AU. After Peter's death, Derek reunites the pack and they come together to fight both the Kanima and Gerard.  
**Disclaimer: **The characters are the property of their respective creator. I own nothing

**Note :** This is the first part of a four-part series but each part end at a point where it could be the end of the story itself. I've already written the first in its entirety and should be posting pretty regularly. I just need to read through it, add and delete some things that sounds wrong, but that's all.

* * *

Prologue

Stiles felt restless, even as if tried to calm his overworking mind down enough to allow him to fall asleep. Only a few days had passed since that fateful night at the burned down Hale house but, to him, it seemed that time had stopped and was now standing still.

Since the night Scott had been bitten, everything had happened so swiftly, without respite. The changes in his best friend, the discovery of Laura's body, the realization Derek wasn't the only werewolf in town, Kate showing up and the revelation that Peter wasn't as comatose as people thought him to be anymore and was looking for revenge on everyone who had contributed to his family burning alive and helped the arsonist go free. Yet, suddenly, everything was peaceful once again and it was putting Stiles on edge.

He should have been thankful for the break, should have been over the moon really, except that he was waiting for the other shoe to drop because he had a feeling that things had only just begun. Both werewolves and hunters were still in town, and would remain there for the foreseeable future, therefore it could only mean more troubles and Stiles wanted to survive.

He was good at research and he knew it. He was bragging but just stating a fact. Scott wouldn't have survived without him and he had helped to reveal both Peter and Kate for what they really were. It wasn't enough, though. Not anymore.

Research may have been very helpful but it wouldn't save him should another life-threatening situation arise. He had been luck, so very lucky, that Peter had chosen to let him go in that parking lot. If the man had decided not to, there wouldn't have been a thing Stiles could have done to save himself and he would now be either a werewolf or dead. Knowing he owed his life to the whim of a killer wasn't a very good feeling.

From the moment the adrenaline had worn off after Peter's demise, his brain had been stuck on this particular subject. It was an extremely unsettling feeling for him to be so focused on only one idea, but he just couldn't let it go. That was the reason he had decided to do something about it, finally.

He had waited a few days before telling his dad he wanted to take up shooting again.

His father had been surprised because Stiles hadn't touched a gun since the day his mother died. She had been the one to teach him how to use firearms when he was younger. She, herself, had learnt at the beginning of her relationship with John, her husband insisting she had to know how to protect herself, and she had chosen to pass on the knowledge to her son. It had been their thing.

Stiles had been surprisingly good at it. He knew he wasn't always the most focused person, was never the most focused person to be thoughtful, because of his ADHD, but with a gun in hand, it had been a switch. He could stare at the target and not move a muscle before he was ready to take the shot. He could reach bull eyes almost every time by the end of their lessons and he had loved it. Not the knowledge he could kill or hurt, of course not, but the facts he was good at something and could share it with his mother.

When she had died, though, he had stopped going. His dad would have taken over, supervising him instead, he knew it, should have wanted it but he simply couldn't. It reminded him of her and, back then, it had been much too painful. So he had stopped going and, when his mother's death had stopped being overwhelming, when he had been once again capable of thinking about the good times, he had had no reason to go again.

Now, though, with the situation having become what it had, he would feel quite a lot better if he could defend himself and if having a gun and using it was the only way, then he would damn well take it. It was high time he stopped being the defenseless human of the group.

Of course, he had had to convince his dad it was a good idea. Of course, the Sheriff knew his son was more than capable of handling a gun but he had been a bit surprise because he did remember Stiles' initial refusal. Stiles hated having to lie to his father, but telling him it was because he wanted to remember his mother was the one argument he knew would win his dad over. To balance things out, and feel less like he was outright lying, he also added that he had been scared of the mountain lions attack and would feel better if he could use a firearm to defend himself. He knew he wouldn't be able to always have one on him, but should such a situation arise again, he could always ask for a weapon from the Sheriff and be protected.

The Sheriff had, of course, caved and made sure the people in charge of the firing range knew to expect Stiles and that he was there with full permission of John. It would avoid some problems and Stiles would be capable of coming and going whenever he wanted to. He also made sure the tenants were aware that Stiles knew what kind of security measure he needed to take and didn't need constant supervision. He may have had someone there to look after him when he was a kid, but he was now old enough to take care of himself.

He had decided to go there tomorrow, which was one of the reasons he was so worked up. While he felt ready, it would still be his first time there without his mother and it would probably still be a somewhat emotional moment for him. Of course, that would only be the first step.

While he had to take a more physical role, it didn't mean he was going to abandon his researches. Quite frankly, seeing Derek was now the Alpha, they would probably need his skills more than ever. Derek was not a bad guy, no, but he was out of his depth. Stiles knew he had never been in line to be the Alpha when his family was alive and he lacked the knowledge on how to take that role. There were too many times in the past he hadn't known what to do and, now, he was completely in charge of the area.

Stiles would need help, he knew it. Of course, he was good but if there was more to do, he would need someone that could keep up because, no matter how gifted he was, he was only one person. He needed to sleep sometimes and he couldn't afford to be spread as thin as he had these last few weeks for the future. It just wouldn't be possibly, especially if he wanted to keep his dad in the dark and he did. Because he refused to put his father in more danger than he already was because of his job. Of course, he already knew who would be the most eligible candidate.

Lydia Martin. Contrary to most people in their high school, Stiles knew perfectly well that Lydia wasn't the airhead she portrayed herself to be. She was extremely intelligent and he knew she would be the perfect person to help him. Of course, she had to wake up first but Stiles refused to think she wouldn't. She wasn't going to die. She was going to wake up and then Stiles would tell her everything.

He knew it shouldn't be his place but she had been attacked by Peter and she deserved to know why she had ended up in hospital. It wouldn't be fair to her to keep her in the dark when she had already been involved and they still didn't know how the bite had affected her.

She should have either healed immediately and become a werewolf or be death if her body hadn't been able to handle the change. But neither scenario had happened and it was a perfect mystery. He had already looked over all the information he had but hadn't found anything promising, at least not anything that looked like real information. The problem was that the internet was full of information and it was difficult to filter the truth from fiction. He hoped that with Lydia there, it would be easier to make the distinction.

Finally, his eyes closed of their own accord and he let sleep take him over. After all, he had a lot to do tomorrow and, when he woke up the next day, he realized it was even more than he thought the moment he saw the text flashing on his phone.

_Tomorrow. The house after school._

The sending number was unknown but, really, he didn't need it to know who it was.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1/12 (+epilogue)

School was a total disaster. It wasn't that anything bad happened, per se, but Stiles was so psyched out by the fact they were going to the Hale house at the end of the day that he could barely concentrate on any of his lessons, even though he knew he needed to. He couldn't afford not to maintain his grades because it would be a sure sign for his dad that something was going on. He couldn't have been more relieved that today was chemistry-free because he would have ended up in detention before the first five minutes were over.

Still, time seemed to move slowly and Stiles could see he wasn't the only one fidgeting. Scott seemed to be on edge, even with Allison so close by. Of course, that could be because the young woman seemed to be no better. It was not difficult to see that the revelation of her family business and everything that went down the night she had followed Kate must have shaken her up pretty badly.

Still, she was handling it better than most would have and, at least, she hadn't rejected Scott, which was a plus. Stiles wondered how her parents were taking her continued association with her boyfriend now that they knew what he was and knew that she knew. Well, they hadn't tried to kill Scott yet, so it was already a good thing. With a bit of luck, the situation would stay steady between hunters and werewolves from now on. If there was no more death, it could maybe stay this way.

Eventually, the bell rang, indicating the end of the last class of the day and Stiles shoved his books and notes in his bag, seeing both Scott and Allison doing the exact same thing. Stiles just raised an eyebrow at Scott. Apparently, Allison was coming with them. He just hoped that Derek was aware of the fact because, if not, there was going to be trouble.

The three teens boarded Stiles' jeep and Stiles just tuned out the chatter between the two lovebirds. He loved Scott, really he did. The boy was like a brother to him and Allison was a princess among them. He cared for her, not only because she had accepted Scott, but also because she was herself. He may not know her as well as Scott did, but he had seen enough to realize she was as beautiful inside as out. He just hoped she would stay that way, even now that she was involved in the supernatural. However, no matter how much he liked the both of them didn't mean he was interested in their nauseatingly sweet love words to each other. And if he tried to begin on another conversation subject, they would simply ignore it.

Finally, they pulled out in front of the halt-burnt house. Seriously, Derek needed to find a better place to live. Or renovate the house, whatever he preferred, because it was a death-trap. The werewolves wouldn't have a problem but if Stiles and Allison had to come there more often, they would be putting their lives at stakes and, quite frankly, it happened often enough without adding things that could easily be remedied to.

Stiles spied another car, besides Derek's camaro, and there was no way he couldn't recognize it. Jackson's car. Well, he really couldn't truthfully say he was surprised. Jackson had wanted to become like Scott since the moment he had realized what he was. Stiles may have thought the adventure of the other day had changed his mind but, apparently, it hadn't. Damn, but that was going to be fun. Now, he would have to contend with Jackson not only at school and Lacrosse, but in pack meetings.

"What's Jackson doing here?" Scott asked, getting out of the jeep and waiting for Allison to do the same.

"Well, my guess is: he asked Derek for the bite and Derek agreed," Stiles summarized briefly. "Come on, now that Derek is the Alpha, he needs a pack and two wolves don't a pack make."

"But… but… it's Jackson," Scott said, as if it meant everything.

Allison went to explain what she had gathered from spying on her parents. And she, herself, used the term spied because they may have accepted she now knew about the family business, that didn't mean they would tell her everything.

"Jackson wanted to become a werewolf. He did say so to my dad when he was drunk, at the Formal. At least, my family will know it was his choice. They won't really like the pack growing but they will know it's not something Derek forced on Jackson."

She put her hand on Scott's arm, calming him down as best as she could. Of course, it worked better than anything Stiles would have been able to do on his own. Another good thing about having Allison in the know. As she was his anchor, she would be able to rein in his instinct, voluntarily, whenever she realized something was wrong and not just by pure luck, as she had done in Econ class.

"Come on, let's go, before Sourwolf come here and drag us in. He's not the most patient person around here," Stiles said, walking determinately in the direction of the house.

Of course, he was fairly sure Derek had been able to hear the whole conversation but had probably let Stiles and Allison explain the Jackson's thing to Scott. He knew he wasn't exactly Scott's favorite person and that the others would be able to explain it more convincingly but Stiles was almost certain his patience must be running out. Besides, he had something he wanted to talk to Derek about and he was nervous enough without waiting even longer. Derek's answer wouldn't change his mind about doing it but he would rather have his benediction. It would at least spare his back another shove into a wall.

As they were expecting, Jackson was already inside the house when they all walked in together. Derek was also there, leaning against a wall, in the shadow, and quite frankly that was getting ridiculous.

"God, you're not a murder suspect anymore," Stiles began, not even caring that everyone else in the room was almost walking on eggshell and Derek scowling as usual. "You could at least stop playing the part."

"Stiles," Derek growled, not really in the mood for the chitchat apparently.

Then again, Stiles amended, when was he ever?

"I can't believe your turned Jackson," Scott whined in guise of hello and Stiles almost winced.

That was so not the right way to begin this conversation and, judging by the way Allison met his eyes with an almost despairing look, she was thinking the exact same thing.

Jackson's eyes flashed blue and he was on his feet faster than Stiles could have imagined.

"Why? Afraid you won't be able to compare anymore, now that we have evened out the playing field?"

Jackson's usual bravado and arrogance was multiplied, which was one of the reasons Stiles had really not looked forward to dealing with Jackson as a werewolf. He knew that the added power would not help his natural tendencies to lord on to others everything he had.

"You have no idea what you've asked for. It's not about all the good things, it's the bad things. It's a curse."

"It's a fucking gift," Jackson countered. "You're just too chicken to realize it."

This was not going to end well and, by the way Derek was beginning to look, if no one did anything, it was going to be an all-out fight between three werewolves with Allison and he caught in the middle of it and he just didn't feel like becoming wolf chew right now, or have to explain to Allison's parents that the reason their daughter was mauled was because, apparently, teenage hormones and werewolf statute really didn't go well together. Derek was hardly calm enough to rein in their temper.

"Okay, okay, stop!" Stiles cried out, slipping in between the both of them and he could hear Allison's breathe catch.

She had probably been reading all she could find about werewolves in her house, and knowing what her family was it must have been a lot, enough to know that what he had just done was extremely dangerous.

"Stiles," Derek growled again, not liking the young man putting himself in direct danger but seeing both his betas trying to calm their temper to avoid hurting their friend – or classmate.

"Look, both of you have to calm down. What is done is done. You two are wolves now and you're both in the same pack at that, so you will have to try to at least get along because that's not going to work otherwise. It's too dangerous to have conflict in the middle of a pack, it makes the wolves instable and you really don't want that. Especially not in Beacon Hills."

"Why not in Beacon Hills?" Scott asked, turning a questioning gaze on his best friend and choosing to ignore Jackson for now.

Both Jackson and Allison also turned to him, even though he was fairly sure both of them had a pretty good idea what he was talking about, especially the archer. Stiles looked at Derek, thinking he would want to explain, but the older man was watching on, an eyebrow raised, interested to know how Stiles would field the answer.

"Because of the Argent," Stiles stated with an apologetic glance to Allison, who just shrugged. "The moment they think someone in the pack is instable enough to hurt a human, they are going to act against us and they would be justified by their code. By the way, Allison, you think you could get me a copy of this code or, at least, an outline if it's not something actually written?"

And, yes, he knew he was going on a tangent but it would be useful to know when the hunters considered themselves in their right to attack. While he wasn't sure all the hunters would respect their code – Kate had proven it wasn't the case – he was pretty sure at least Allison's dad would. He had, after all, chosen to go against his own sister when he had realized what she had done and what she was going to do to Scott. From what Stiles had been told, he would also be able to rein in most of the hunters and that meant the most intelligent thing to do would be to stay within the line of what he tolerated.

"I'll try to talk to my dad. I mean… I don't know if he will tell me since he knows it's going to go straight back to you but…"

"Tell him if we know what's acceptable, then there won't be any problem from us. Wouldn't it be better for him too if there was no need to go after us?"

He saw a shadow reach his feet and he realized he had absolutely forgotten Derek was even there, what with his habits of staying mostly silent, and he had taken control of the meeting and began talking in the name of the pack.

"I mean," he backtracked quickly. "Derek should know about the code and what would be acceptable but, hey, not my place to decide and I will just shut up now."

He had turned to Derek while he was talking, trying to see how badly he had messed up but Derek's face was, as usual, impossible to read. Derek fixed him for a while and Stiles was trying not to flinch, beginning to ask himself if he should make a strategic retreat but then the Alpha nodded to him.

"Stiles is right, Allison," Derek said and the way he talked seemed almost approving. "Tell your father that we want to abide by the code, that we don't want any trouble from the hunters."

He then turned to look at both Scott and Jackson.

"He's also right that we can't afford to have any discord in the pack. We need to become a more stable unit. The fact that Allison and Stiles are there helps. Packs are always more stable when there are humans in them. It tends to rein in our instinct, make us more human ourselves. You saw that when you stopped fighting the moment Stiles stepped in. You both realized he wouldn't be strong enough to take a beating from the two of you and you stopped."

He stopped talking for a moment, thinking about what he had to say.

"I should have explained everything about how pack works to Scott the moment he was bitten but there was too much going on and I was too set on finding Laura's killer. I'm not making the same mistake again. We are going to be a pack and we all need to know what it means."

Stiles put his hand up and Derek looked exasperated for a second but let the kid ask his question.

"Peter bit Lydia," he began, even if everyone was already aware of that. "I know she didn't change but she isn't dead either and when she wakes up, she will have questions. We can't keep her in the dark."

"No!" Jackson yelled out, not at all okay with telling his ex-girlfriend. "She can't be told."

"And what the hell do you want to tell her. She saw Peter on the field, she will know something happened. She won't believe a mountain lion bit her. And she's smart, Derek," Stiles said, turning to him. "I know you think I'm biased because everyone knows I've a crush on her, but that's not what it's about. She's really smart. She could help. You said it yourself, you don't know all there is to know and I can't go on doing all the research we need by myself. I won't be able to keep up and if we don't want my dad clued in, I can't afford to let my marks do down or anything. I will need help and she would be perfect for that."

While Jackson was still arguing Lydia shouldn't be told, Derek mused on Stiles' argument. The boy was right. He didn't know everything. He was never supposed to become the Alpha. He knew all about pack life, about instincts, but all the political aspect, the other supernatural beasts, he had no idea about. And it wasn't fair to ask Stiles to do everything by himself. He had school. He had lacrosse, he also needed to take care of his dad…. He was only human.

"When she wakes up, you will explain everything to her. If she agrees to be part of the pack, I'll talk to her and explain more. But whether or not she agrees, she must keep everything a secret. And I don't want to hear anything more about this. I won't go back on this decision. The discussion is closed."

He looked around the room and examined them one by one, watching their attentive faces.

"I'll come to you, one by one, to officially welcome you in the pack. You already are but, this way, when more wolves join us, they will recognize you instantly as pack whether you're human or not. Now, if there anything else you want to know?"

It seemed that Derek really was turning a new leaf, Stiles mused. While he was still making the final decisions, he was showing more patience than he ever did before but Stiles supposed that having solved his sister's murder and being secure in the fact that there was no raging wolf around town changed things quite a lot, not talking about the fact that the one responsible for his family dying had finally paid.

Allison took example on Stiles and raised her hand. Derek snorted.

"You don't actually need to ask permission to talk. We're not in kindergarten, no matter how much it seems like it sometimes," he finished, looking at the boys and ignoring Stiles' offended 'hey'.

"It's not a question but I wanted to warn you, there are talks of my grandfather coming to town, on my dad's side. I'm not sure yet it's actually going to happen, but…. Well, from what I've heard from my parents, he's a hardcore hunter. My dad didn't seem very happy about the possibility, at least…"

Well, that was telling. If Chris Argent wasn't happy about his father coming to Beacon Hills because he was too much of a hunter, that was pretty bad news indeed.

"Thank you, Allison. Keep me posted if you hear anymore about it."

She nodded and it seemed the meeting was finished until Derek talked again.

"Scott, Jackson, I need you both to stay behind."

Stiles nearly objected but refrained. Derek was doing quite a good job at the sharing thing and had been pretty laid back about letting Stiles talk up to now. He didn't want to push too much. Besides, Scott would tell him if it was anything important anyway.

"I'll drive you back, Alli'," Stiles said, more to Scott than the girl in question, knowing his best friend would be worried about how she was going to go back home, never mind the fact she was more likely to hurt her aggressor than the other way around.

They said their goodbye, after exchanging all phone numbers just in case, and Stiles and Allison climbed into the jeep. Both of them were pretty curious about what could be going on at the house, but they would have to wait to know. Stiles began to drive and the first few minutes were spent in silence. Of course, it couldn't last. Not with Stiles.

"So, are you okay with all of this?" he asked.

Allison decided to be completely honest.

"I guess. I mean I'm okay with Scott being a werewolf and my family being hunters but… they lied to me, all these years. I was in danger recently and they still didn't tell me anything and that's… I just don't understand."

Stiles knew what she meant. He understood where she was coming from but he also could understand why her parents acted the way they did.

"They wanted to protect you. I'm not saying they did the right thing," Stiles added quickly when he saw her glare. "At least, not completely. Not telling you when you were a child, that was the right thing I think. Letting you have a childhood, away from this, was good but… they should have told you at the very least when you arrived in Beacon Hills, especially when they began suspecting someone at the school to be a beta…. But they wanted to preserve you, preserve your innocence. It wasn't the right thing, but I can understand their reasoning."

Allison was silent for a while but, eventually, she nodded.

"I know. I'm not really mad. I guess… my trust in them is a little shaken up right now. I mean, how can I know they won't lie to me again for what they think is my own good?"

Stiles looked at her, smiling softly.

"I guess you just have to have faith. Look, for what I've seen of them, your parents love you very much. Now that they realize that keeping you in the dark has been more dangerous for you than if you actually knew what was going on, I think they will not do it again."

"I guess…"

There was a blank in the conversation.

"There is also my aunt," Allison said after a while and Stiles turned to her frowning.

Stiles could understand she was hurt and conflicted. Stiles hadn't seen Kate as anything else than a psychopath but, for Allison, she had been by all account a very loving aunt and, quite frankly, Stiles didn't doubt for a single second she had loved Allison with all her heart, no matter how much he hated her.

"It must be difficult but don't forget who she was to you. I mean… she was your aunt, you need to keep the good memories too."

"That wasn't what I meant but thank you."

Allison bit her lower lip and Stiles could see she was hesitating. He let her. He didn't know what she wanted to ask but, if it was important, she needed to take her time, to do it at her own rhythm.

"Can you answer me truthfully, Stiles? Not what you think I want to hear, or what would hurt less. Just what you think is most likely the truth?"

Stiles swallowed with difficulty. She looked so serious but there was a quiet desperation in her eyes and he stopped the jeep on the side of the road. He needed to keep his whole attention on Allison and she smiled at him, softly, thankful that he was taking her seriously.

"Tell me."

"Do you think my parents knew about Kate, about what she had done…? But they chose not to do anything about it until they had no other choice than acknowledge it?"

"No," Stiles said immediately, not even taking the time to think about his answer.

She looked as if she was going to argue, tell him he hadn't thought about it, that he was just saying this because he knew it was what she wanted to hear, even though she wanted to believe that more than anything, wanted her parents to be good people, people who would be incapable of ignoring something as big as this.

"Look, I can't really say anything about your mom. Well, except that she scares the crap about of me, but that's not exactly helpful. I barely so her for a minute, so no, I can't tell you what's most likely. But your dad didn't know Allison and that's not just me making a guess here. It's not what I think you want to hear or some deduction on my part. He didn't know. I'm a hundred percent certain of it because I'm the one who told him she was lit that fire and the way he reacted… the look in his eyes when I told him…. You can't fake that kind of reaction. He didn't know."

Allison let out a shuddering breathe, almost a sob really, and she smiled, a true relieved smile, thankful to know the truth. Before Stiles had time to react, she had him caught in a hug and, while he was surprised, he couldn't do anything but close his own arms around her, holding her tight against him understanding.

"Thank you."

He smiled at her and, a few moments later, they were back on the road, not stopping until the jeep came to a halt in front of the Argent house. Allison stepped out and, with a last thank you, made her way home. Stiles stayed until she disappeared inside the house. His dad was the Sheriff after all and he had always made sure to tell him that, when you drove someone home, you always made sure to wait until the person was inside before leaving.

He looked at his watch and, thinking about his father's planning, knew the man wouldn't be home for quite a while yet so, even though it should be time for dinner already, he decided to go to the shooting range. After all, now that he had decided to do it, he wanted to get it over with. The sooner he began practicing again, the better.

He stopped right in front of the building, went it and got all geared up. He was alone at the moment and it didn't surprise him much. It was a small town and not many people exercising with weapons, except for the police force. He set the paper target up, took aim and fired for the first time in years. It was… not a complete disaster but hardly what you could call good either. Of course, he needed to get used to having a gun in hand again. He grimaced.

He set up a new target and fired again. Better. The third time was even better but still not as good as it could have been. He was rustier than he had thought.

"Not bad."

Stiles startled pretty badly. He hadn't heard anyone come in, absorbed by what he was doing, and had thought he was still alone. He whirled around and found himself face to face with Chris Argent, who immediately took a step back. Right, he still had a gun in hand, and was apparently aiming it right in front of him. He instantly lowered it and put the safety back on, watching as the hunter relaxed minutely. Yes, flailing around with a loaded gun, not a good idea.

"Sorry, Stiles. I didn't mean to frighten you," the man apologized, even if he seemed a little bit amused.

"No problem. I think I should probably get used to people appearing out of nowhere. Sorry about…," Stiles gestured to the gun, indicating the way he could have accidentally shot Chris where he stood without even meaning to.

The hunter shook his head, showing he held no grudge.

"You're pretty good," he repeated, indicating the target. "You need a better starting position, though."

Without even asking, he manipulated Stiles' body and limbs to put him in what he deemed was the right position and Stiles, not being one to miss an opportunity to improve, especially from an expert, took aim and fired at the fourth target. He smiled when he saw the result. It was already more in the vicinity of what it had been before his mother's death.

"Thanks, Mister Argent," he said, showing his appreciation, not wanting to get on the hunter's bad side. "I haven't practiced in a long time. I didn't think I would do it again but after all that happened, I guess I just didn't want to…"

He stopped because, yes, he didn't think Chris wanted to hear his whole life story and it wasn't as if he was particularly comfortable with the man, although he did appreciate a polite conversation instead of being slammed against a wall.

"You don't want to feel helpless again. I can understand that and I'm glad I caught you here, actually. I wanted to apologize for my actions the other night, at the hospital. I shouldn't have shoved you around like that."

Stiles was speechless. He hadn't expected that at all. Still, he could see the older man seemed to genuinely mean his apology and he did understand what he had acted like that in the first place. He had wanted to stop Peter before it had been too late and thought that Stiles had the answer. It wasn't absolutely unfounded either.

"It's okay," Stiles accepted gracefully but it didn't seem to please the hunter.

"No, it's really not Stiles. I shouldn't have done it. You're human. Hell, you're a teenager. I had no right to do that, even if the reason behind my action was valid. Doing things like that, not caring about anything else but the result, it's a sloppy road that leads to…"

He interrupted himself, seeming to realize that he was ranting at one of his daughter's friend but Stiles still heard the end of the sentence, even without Chris voicing it out loud. It was what lead to being the kind of person Kate was. Stiles swallowed and stayed silent, not sure what to say and, for once, thinking better than to fill the silence with meaningless chatter.

"I probably should go," Stiles finished by saying. "I need to prepare dinner," he felt compelled to add, not wanting for it to look as if he was running away which, to be truthful, he probably was.

Chris smiled, even if it didn't completely reach his eyes and Stiles had to look away to not react to the grief still present in them, the same way it was in Allison's. While Allison couldn't forget her loving aunt, Chris could probably still see his baby sister as she was back when she was still an innocent.

"I won't keep you," the man said. "Good night, Stiles."

"'Night, Mister Argent."

He quickly got to the door but heard the hunter call him back. He turned to him, curious and vigilant at the same time.

"You can call me Chris."

Stiles just nodded and left, leaving the hunter to his training and thoughts running through his head. It had, quite honestly, been a very weird encounter, extremely friendly compared to the last time they had seen each other. Well, it would be a good thing to be on more sociable terms with a hunter who wasn't Allison.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2/12 (+epilogue)

Stiles was excited, to say the last. One could say overjoyed even. He had just heard the news, from Melissa McCall, that Lydia had finally woken up. While she was understandable shook up from her near-death experience, she was also physically fine. The doctors wanted to keep her in observation for a while, mostly to make sure there would be no complication from her coma, but she would probably be released soon.

That also meant she could be told everything and Stiles knew it just had to be done right away. If they waited, she could take it badly, thinking they had decided to leave her in the dark. That was why, the moment the school bell rang, he was going straight to the hospital, giving Scott the task to tell Derek what was going on. They didn't really meet every day but, since the first reunion, they did go quite regularly to the Hale house to learn more about the life of a pack.

Stiles counted the minutes until the end of the last period and, when time was finally upon him, he shoved all his school material in his bag and practically ran to his jeep. He, of course, made sure not to speed, not wanting his father to ask question if he was caught, though he was fairly sure he could use his epic crush on Lydia Martin to get out of trouble. Still, better safe than sorry.

Once he arrived in front of her door, he hesitated. He didn't know how she would take everything but he really hoped she would react well. He knew he didn't have any kind of proof to offer her, since he hadn't taken a werewolf with him, but he also knew she was capable of thinking for herself and, if his explanation matched all the observation she had done herself, she would be able to rationalize it and believe him.

He knocked on the door and entered the room. She was alone, her parents working as usual. He had made sure of that beforehand because it would have been a pretty awkward situation if there had been someone else. He couldn't have told the truth and probably would have spazzed out and, okay, that wasn't exactly knew when it came to his interaction with Lydia but still…

She looked up when he entered and, the moment he looked into her eyes, he knew he had taken the right decision because they were full of determination and he was almost certain she already knew something was up, something that involved him and, even if he hadn't already decided to before, he wouldn't have been able to get out of this room without spilling his gut about everything he knew.

"You have come to tell me what happened, what has been happening since the first day of school," she said and it wasn't a question.

It was a statement and, for a minute or two, Stiles didn't know what to say. He was tongue-tied because she may be pale, not wearing any makeup and a hospital gown certainly wasn't going to make anyone win a fashion contest but she was still beautiful, mainly because her beauty, for Stiles, came from inside, from her strength and her smart and not just her physical appearance and if she looked like a goddess.

"Yes. You deserve to know after what you went through. I basically told everyone that it was telling you and it didn't matter if they weren't okay with it but almost everyone agreed immediately anyway."

Her nostrils flared as she read in between the lines. Someone didn't want her to know what was going on and it didn't take a genius to figure out who it was. Lydia was a genius, though, so it was even more easy for her but it did nothing to calm her down.

"Jackson," she nearly growled and, if Stiles hadn't know she hadn't been changed, he would have thought the bite had taken after all.

He just nodded.

"It's going to sound pretty crazy but I'm going to tell you everything and I promise it's the truth."

She nodded resolutely, preparing herself to hear the explanation and motioning to Stiles to take a chair and sit down while he talked.

He did and looked right at her, trying to find out how to begin. He took strength into her curiosity and solid demeanor and began his tale with the events of the night he had overheard the police message about finding Laura's body in the wood. From then on, he explained everything in the order he had found out, not wanting to leave anything out.

He knew he was babbling, telling everything in a mess of an explanation but she never once interrupted him. She was intelligent enough to know it was important to gather all information someone had to share before starting to interrogate them about more precise points. If she interrupted, Stiles would get lost in his explanation and something may be forgotten. She would ask all her questions at the end of his account but, for the moment, she listened, enraptured by the tale.

It took him a while, there was so much to tell, a whole other world to describe and so many situations to explain. In the end, though, Stiles finally ran out of words and just stopped talking, letting the girl digest everything.

Lydia nodded. The explanation would have sounded absolutely insane to anyone else but she knew Stiles was telling the truth. It explained so much, though. She had a lot of questions but there were some things she needed to get out of the way first.

"Thank you, for saving me. You took a great risk for me, facing Peter like that," she said because, yes, she may be a bitch – and proud of it, thank you very much – but that didn't mean she couldn't be grateful that someone had literally faced down a serial killer for her.

Stiles ducked his head, blushing, muttering that she was welcome and she knew she simply couldn't drag it out anymore, couldn't pretend she didn't see it. She had been aware of Stiles' crush on her and, while she had never done anything to encourage it – except for going with Allison's idea of letting him take her to the Formal – she had also never said a word to discourage him. She had never cared enough to think about how it affected him but, after what he had done for her, she owed it to him not to let it go on anymore.

"Stiles…. It won't ever happen, you know that," she said bluntly, not being one to beat around the bush. "I like you, I do really. You're smart and you see me, the real me, but I don't like you that way and I don't think it will ever be the case. I love Jackson, even when I don't like him very much like now, but…. I can't control it. If I did, then maybe it would be different."

It hurt a lot, there was no saying otherwise, but Stiles knew it before she had even said it. He had known all along, even as he was still going on about his ten-year plan. He never really thought it would happen, even after the bit of hope their date to the Formal had sparked but, the moment she had left the dance to go looking for Jackson, he had known there would never be a chance. Still, to hear her say it made it more real and Stiles realized he had needed for her to say it, needed to hear it straight from her to be able to actually move on.

"I know," he admitted quietly, eyes fixed on the bed before looking back up at her and smiling sadly. "Thank you for being honest."

Lydia smiled, not the winning smile she used in high school, but a real smile, one that softened her whole face and made her more human.

"I should have been honest with you a long time ago. It wasn't fair of m, Stiles. You're too good a person for me. I need someone who's a bit of a jerk, I guess."

"He doesn't deserve you. But love has never been about deserving. He's going to come back crawling to you, he knows you're the right person for him. Just don't give in too soon."

Lydia grinned wickedly.

"Oh, don't worry. I know how to handle Jackson."

There was a comfortable blank in the conversation before Stiles started again.

"There is another reason I wanted you to know…"

"You want me to help you with the research part of thing," Lydia cut, already knowing what Stiles was going to ask her.

Stiles opened his mouth but closed in again without a word. He should have known she would see right through it. She was too smart not to.

"I need help. I can't do it alone anymore. It's too much…"

It did cost Stiles to admit it in front of Lydia but he knew it wouldn't be a good idea for him to lie to her, even by omission because she wouldn't take too kindly to that, and if he really wanted her help, he had to be completely honest and show that he did need her. He let her study him and she must have found what she was looking for because she suddenly smiled, all teeth, and he almost jokingly told her 'what big teeth you have' but, thankfully for him, she started talking before he had time.

"Of course, I will help. You and me… there is nothing we won't be able to find. It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship," she said and, yes, she was being Machiavellian but she also seemed to mean it, Stiles could see, and he couldn't help smiling back at her.

He may never have a chance with her but he would at least have her friendship and it was so much better than being ignored.

"When are they letting you out?" he asked, curious.

"Tomorrow. And you better have everything you've ever found on the subject of werewolves out and about," she said pointed her finger at him. "Because as soon as school is over for you, and I know when that it, I'm coming to your house and you're showing me everything."

It wasn't a request, it was an order, and Stiles knew better than try to be contrary. He bowed to her with a 'yes, ma'am' and decided it was time to go. She needed her rest and he needed to tidy his room some because he knew it was a total mess and, maybe he wasn't going to try to impress her anymore, but he still couldn't forget it was Lydia Martin who was going to grace his room with her presence and he could leave everything in a mess. God knew he didn't want risking her finding some unclean underwear.

"And Lydia, talk to Allison. After everything that happened, she really could use a friend," he said, knowing that Lydia really liked the archer.

Lydia nodded, knowing it was the truth and, to be fair, she could use a friend of her own, a female friend. Sometimes, you just needed to have someone of your own gender to talk to.

Once he was out, Stiles texted Derek to tell him Lydia had accepted to help him for his research and he quickly received an answer.

_I will meet her to answer her questions. Give her my number. We will set up a time._

Stiles snorted.

_You say that as if you're the one who'll decide. You've obviously never met Lydia Martin. Will do though._

* * *

The next afternoon found the Sheriff baffled to open his front door to find himself face to face with none other than his son's crush, fresh out of hospital, with a laptop in one hand and a bag in the other. He was a bit wary, as he wasn't aware that they were actually friend, even after his taking her to the Formal, and quite frankly not sure what she was doing there as his son had probably forgotten to tell him she was coming.

She offered him her most winning smile and, at once, he could see what had attracter her son to her as he found himself letting her in without even meaning to.

"Stiles is going to tell me what I've missed while I've been in hospital, Sheriff Stilinski. I've so much to study if I don't want to fail this year, I really need some help," she said convincingly enough that the Sheriff didn't found it suspicious, even knowing from her son that she was the smartest girl at school.

"Of course, Lydia. I hope you're feeling better," he still asked her, knowing the recuperating must be hard on her after everything that had happened.

"Oh, yes. It's difficult but I've my friends. They're helping a lot," she said, not lying this time.

Knowing what had really happened aided her immensely and finding herself capable of doing something about it was helping her get over the trauma. She wasn't stupid enough to think everything would be alright immediately, she still had nightmares and, sometimes, even when she was awake, she would feel herself scared for no specific reason, but she knew it would get better with time now that she knew what was going on. Her research sessions with Stiles would be the beginning of her therapy.

"I'm glad. And if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask. You can go up. Stiles!" he then yelled. "Your friend is here."

She smiled and thanked the Sheriff once again before climbing the stairs and joining Stiles in his room. She closed the door behind her, knowing that Stiles didn't want his father aware of what was happening around town. She understood. She didn't think she would want her parents to know either and she was hardly as close to them as Stiles was to his father.

"You've got everything ready?" she asked in guise of hello.

Stiles indicated the stack of books and printed documentation he had neatly stacked on his bed. The books had bookmarks inserted at several place.

"I didn't have time to make copy of the interesting pages yet, but I still got some times before I've to give them back to the library. I'll do it one of those days. Our library is weirdly stacked up with supernatural books, it's kind of strange when you think about it. Otherwise, there are quite a few books I'll have to look up at Deaton's. He said we could go whenever we wanted to."

Lydia nodded. Stiles was smart enough not to rely solely on the internet but to check out printed books. She should not have been surprised. Of course, the lore must be old so a lot of it should be looked up into old books to have the closest account to the original version. Of course, with her there, they won't have to use only those in English.

"If there are any that are in Latin, just give them to me. I'll look through them and translate the relevant passages," she said while flicking through the documentation that had obviously been taken from the web.

Stiles' jaw dropped and he took a second to close it. He had known Lydia was smart, not that she could actually speak Latin. That was great! He had had to abandon quite a few books that had looked promising but had no English translation. Had he had more time, he would have taken them and tried to translate them while working on his Latin, which he had begun learning, but with everything that had been going on, it had been simply impossible.

He jumped from his seat and looked through the mass of paper he had on his desk. He knew he had kept the list somewhere, for reference, and he finally found it.

"Ahah!" he exclaimed before practically throwing it at Lydia.

She raised an inquisitive eyebrow but did read through it. The titles looked promising at the very least and Stiles had been smart enough to keep the library references so she wouldn't even need to browse. That was good.

"I'll make sure to get them tomorrow and I'll keep you informed if I find something interesting."

"Thanks. Now, this is a copy of everything I have so you can keep it," Stiles said, indicating the folder she was skimming through. "It's a lot but I've highlighted things I'm sure are true, either because Derek confirmed or because I've cross-referenced them."

Lydia nodded. It would be useful to have a baseline to begin with and that was quite the one.

"Give me your phone, I'll put Derek's number in it. He wants you to call if you've got any question," Stiles said and Lydia promptly handed him her cell.

"Oh, you can be sure I'm going to call. I'll have to make a list of question I want answered first, though, and I need to talk to Allison before, about the hunter's side of things. It will be easier to find the truth if I can have different point of view."

Stiles nodded. It would be useful but he wasn't sure how much Allison would be able to help. He didn't know how much she knew and Stiles wasn't all that keen on asking her parents. Even with Chris' oddly friendly behavior, he wasn't certain how well the questions would be received considering everything they would say would be reported to the pack immediately.

"Good. Now explain everything to me, in details…"

She had taken out a notebook and a pen and listened to him, taking notes, as he began to tell her everything he had learnt through his research.

* * *

"Well, damn, that's a lot of information. You've been awake for all of three days, Lydia. How the hell did you manage to get all this?" Allison exclaimed from her place on top of her bed.

Lydia and she had come straight to her house after school that day. The archer had been delighted that Lydia still talked to her after everything that had gone down and, when she had asked for information, she hadn't hesitated a single second before inviting her to her house. It was the least she could do after what Lydia had been through because of a werewolf. Besides, that way, she would at least have another girl she could talk to because, for the moment, the club was mostly male oriented.

"Stiles. He had done tons of research since Scott has been bitten and he had given everything he had to me. The boy sure can do his homework. We're going to meet pretty regularly from now on to put in common all of our new information."

Allison was suitable impressed. Of course, she had already seen that Stiles was great at the werewolf stuff, the way he had been able to calm Jackson and Scott, the things he had said at the meetings, but that was quite a lot, especially with everything else that had been going on at the time. Still, there was something that bothered her in what Lydia had said.

"Lydia, Stiles is…"

"In love with me. I know. I've told him there was no chance and he accepts it. We're friends. I'm not going to hurt him anymore, not intentionally, but he knows Jackson's it for me."

Allison nodded. She was happy about that, even if she felt bad for Stiles. However, he could at least move on now. She would have told Lydia to speak with him if it hadn't been the case, because it would have been way too cruel otherwise.

"Where are you meeting?" Allison asked, pretty interested in participating whenever Scott was occupied with Derek and Jackson, for their own training.

"Mostly Stiles' house, though we do have to be careful with his dad coming and going. He doesn't know and Stiles want it to stay that way but it's getting difficult. My house is out, though, because of my mom's paranoia after what happened. I think she's okay with me going to Stiles' because his dad's the Sheriff but I can't have weird things laying about and books and documents about werewolf, especially after all that has happened? Very weird."

"Yeah…. I guess I've at least the advantage of having a family in the know."

Neither of the girls realized that their conversation had been overheard by Chris. He hadn't meant to spy but he had been passing by his daughter's room and was curious to know if Lydia had been told the truth or if she was kept in the dark by her friends. Apparently, she knew and had decided to help Stiles out. However, hearing the difficulties the two adolescents were having and Allison's own answer to that, he began to think about a possible solution.

* * *

When Chris entered the shooting range that day, it was in the hope of seeing someone in particular. He smiled as he saw the familiar silhouette of the teenage boy he wanted to talk to. He knew his presence may seem a bit stalker-like but then again, he knew Stiles would see the necessity of that talk. At the very least, it may keep the boy more attentive to his surroundings if he began to get paranoiac about being followed by a hunter.

"Back again, Stiles?" he asked, not bothering to make any noise as he approached and holding back a laugh when the boy jumped.

Thankfully, Stiles was able to contain the worst of his reaction this time and set the gun down, safety back on, before turning around.

"You did it on purpose this time," Stiles accused with a frown and he saw Chris grin in amusement.

That was all the answer he needed and he pouted. He had more than enough with the werewolves in his life doing everything they could to give him a heart attack, he didn't need the humans to step up to the plate or he wouldn't get to see the end of the year. Or, maybe, he just needed to be more attentive to his surroundings.

"I've heard Lydia and my daughter talk," Chris began and was immediately cut off by Stiles.

"She's not a wolf, but she deserved to know. She was mauled by Peter, so she would have known something happened and we didn't want to leave her in the dark."

"Stiles!" Chris exclaimed, ears almost ringing from the onslaught of words. "I'm not accusing anyone of anything."

"You're not?"

Chris shook his head. It seemed that the pack really didn't want to get in his bad books. He hadn't been a hundred percent sure when Allison had told him but it was very clear now. Still, there was no need to be so afraid.

"I was just going to say. I heard that Lydia and you have some difficulty in finding a place to meet for your researches. I want to offer my house. You won't have to worry about being overheard and we have a lot of archive that could be of use. I know how difficult it can be to find a reliable source. At least, our books tend to be accurate. They have been in our family for generations now."

Stiles couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was too good to be true, the best damn thing he had heard in a while. Information he could be sure of and use to cross-reference his other sources. It would be a good point of reference. Besides, he may have more documentation about the hunter side of things and that would prove useful. It was always good to know your enemy, not that he was considering Chris to be the enemy, but still.

"Oh, man, that would be great. Won't you get in trouble because of it?" he asked because, yes, the other hunters may have a hell of a problem with one of theirs offering information and shelter to part of a werewolf pack.

Chris shook his head.

"Just make sure it's only you and Lydia. If anyone visits, it really wouldn't do for us to have a werewolf roaming freely in the house. But both of you are human and friends with my daughter, even if you're part of the pack, no nobody would blame me for having you around."

Chris paused, thinking about what he was going to say next.

"Besides, I trust you won't use the information you find to bad end. I don't have anything against Derek, no matter what he may think. The way I acted before… that was because I thought he was involved with the killing, or at least covering for the one responsible. The Hale had never done anything to gather our attention. What Kate did was…. It was simply an abomination. As long as he act as his parents did, there won't be any problem from me. And Scott is a good kid."

Stiles smiled. It was weird to hear Chris say that about his best friend but it was true. Besides, he had to admit, it was good to know exactly where Derek stood with the Argent. He would make sure to tell the Alpha about that conversation the next time he saw him. It may help mend some fences because, while Derek had said nothing against the Argent – except for Kate – in a show of respect towards Allison, Stiles knew the Alpha still wasn't too comfortable about having them in the same town. Knowing Chris' opinion may help him relax a bit.

"Thanks. It would be really helpful for Lydia and I. I think my dad is beginning to suspect something's going on even if he isn't sure what."

"Not easy to be sneaky around the Sheriff, I suspect," Chris joked.

"Not really, no. It was kind of easier before because, well, with everything that was happening, he had so much work he was pretty much never home, but now…"

Chris nodded. He could understand the difficulty. At least, the kids would have an escape where they could talk without being afraid of anyone catching the wrong part of a conversation. If he could offer them that much, he would. They were all so young, too young to be involved, but too informed not to do anything about what they knew. He could also keep an eye on them, make sure they didn't get in over their head. He knew Derek was a good man, but he was never meant to be the Alpha. Chris was aware of that and there was nothing worse than being given a power you weren't ready for.

"Just tell Allison when you and Lydia want to come. I will get some books you can begin with ready."

"Thank you," Stiles said again, smiling, and was rewarded by an answering grin.

"Well, why don't you show me your progress…"

* * *

"Does anyone have something to add concerning pack business?" Derek asked at the end of their meeting because, up to now, he had been the only to talk, continuing their education.

"Yep, I do!" Stiles exclaimed before jumping on his feet.

Both Allison and Scott snickered at Derek's exasperated sigh, but the wolf had gotten used to Stiles' energy and didn't comment. Jackson was still sulking, finding life in the pack being difficult and Lydia wasn't one to comment if it wasn't needed so she just raised an interested eyebrow.

"I talked to Chris yesterday," he began but didn't get to go any further.

"Chris?" his best friend interrupted, eyes almost bugging, while Allison seemed more interested than before.

"Chris Argent," Stiles explained. "You know, your future father-in-law."

"I know who you're talking about. Why are you calling him Chris?" Scott demanded.

"Because he asked me to," Stiles stated, looking at him strangely. "Anyway, he told me that Lydia and I could use his place to research and he would supply us with his books."

Lydia immediately became more interested and he could see in her eyes she basically wanted to run there on the spot.

"You're sure it's a good idea?" Derek asked, cautious.

Stiles could see he really wasn't very keen on having his pack so close to the hunter family but also aware that the information they could find like that would be extremely useful.

"He really doesn't want any more trouble, Derek. He does trust, he knows his sister was the one responsible for everything that happened and that you're not to blame for what your uncle did. He knows you're not going to go around killing people. I think he just want us to be able to make sure nothing happen in Beacon Hills that would gather a hunter's intervention."

Derek nodded. He still wasn't enthusiastic but knew it was a good idea and Chris was the most level-headed in that family.

"Okay, go for it. But if you get uneasy, you get out of here. You follow your instinct."

"Am I the only one wondering when exactly Stiles talk to Argent?" Jackson interrupted. "Unless, of course, there is something about him and Allison he wants to share."

Scott growled at the badly-veiled insinuation and Derek shut him up immediately while both Allison and Lydia glared at him.

"Actually, Jackson, I met him at the shooting range. I've taken to firearm practice again and he has helped me a bit. Want to see what I've learnt?"


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3/12 (+epilogue)

When Stiles pushed the door of the Hale house, he was surprised to see a new face there. He knew the kid; well at least he knew who he was. Isaac Lahey, who was going to Beacon Hills high and was part of the lacrosse team. Still, he had no idea that Derek knew him and had decided to make him pack. Considering that he didn't think anyone at school would have wanted to add to the pack, it had to be Derek's idea.

"Hey, Isaac!" Stiles greeted and, judging the way the others were all looking at him as if he had grown another head, he must have been the only one to react like that and not let the presence of the other teen bother him.

"Hi, Stiles," the blonde answered shyly and Stiles almost had to coo.

At least, Isaac, unless the power went to his head suddenly, would be easier to manage than Jackson. He seemed so quiet, almost as if he wasn't sure he was at this place among them and he seemed to stick close to Derek, probably because of the security the Alpha presented for a new wolf.

"So, you have a new pup?" Stiles asked Derek, knowing it annoyed the hell out of Jackson and Scott when he referred to them as that.

Allison hid a giggle behind her hand as all four werewolves looked at Stiles, mostly put out, only Isaac seeming on the verge of smiling. At least, the new recruit of the pack seemed not to mind too much. It would be nice to have someone who didn't get aggravated at his humor.

"I can't believe you don't think it's a bad idea!" Scott groused from where he was sitting. "How can you curse more people?"

"The bite is not a curse, it's a gift. I get that you didn't get the choice, Scott, and I'm really sorry for you but I asked Isaac and I told him all he needed to know before he accepted," Derek said, trying to calm himself because it just wouldn't do to lose it at Scott, not when he had been trying to get along better.

"I wanted it," Isaac piped up, eager to defend his Alpha's choice. "I wanted to be a werewolf."

Stiles observed him and, even without the werewolf super-hearing, he could see he was telling the truth. However, there was something else behind his words, something he wasn't telling. Stiles wanted to ask, he really did, but didn't get the time because Jackson spoke up, revealing secrets that weren't his to tell.

"Yeah, because you don't want to get knocked around by your dad anymore. You think that being a werewolf is going to help with that?"

Stiles couldn't believe what he had just heard. He knew Jackson wasn't the nicest person around, god knew he had experience with that, but to say something like that…. And the fact that he just admitted to knowing the kid was being abused and hadn't gone to the cop about it sickened Stiles.

Isaac didn't react well at all. He was, after all, still very volatile as a newborn werewolf. He threw himself at Jackson and only Derek and Scott's inhumanly fast reflex spared the beta a hell of a beating. Scott had taken Jackson out of the trajectory, more to spare Isaac the knowledge he had hurt someone than to rescue Jackson.

Derek was trying to calm Isaac down and Stiles knew it was the only reason that was preventing him from reaping Jackson a new one. As it was, Lydia was taking care of it with more gusto than even Derek could have managed. She had always been able to cut someone down with a few words, not matter how small the offense. This was all but a small offense and she was making sure he knew.

"Oh, come on, it's the truth."

"Maybe," Allison said and she didn't seem any happier than Lydia at the moment. "But it wasn't your truth to tell."

That was correct. It should have been Isaac's choice to tell them when he felt ready to, once he trusted them enough to confide in them. It was a choice that shouldn't have been taken away from him and he knew that Isaac must have felt terrible having people he barely knew aware of what he was going through.

"Or, if you really had to tell someone," Stiles added with a bite. "Maybe you could have to the station. That would have been more useful."

Stiles got up and went to the corner of the room Isaac and Derek had claimed, the younger whimpering slightly now that the anger had abated and he had realized his secret had been shared with five people. He ignored Derek's pointed glare and red eyes flashing as he didn't want Stiles to approach and crouched down at Isaac's side.

"Isaac," he begun gently, more seriously than most people in this room had ever heard him talk. "It doesn't make any difference for us. Well, except maybe for the overwhelming desire to go and kick your dad ass. But you're still the same person. It doesn't make you weak in our eyes, no matter what Jackson says. Just don't listen to him, okay? He's a douche and most of us ignore him anyway."

He knew Jackson could hear everything and it must not be doing anything to help him integrate the pack but, quite frankly, after that comment, he did deserve it. Maybe it would be easier for him if he stopped trying to put everyone around him down.

Isaac lifted his gaze to meet Stiles' eyes and read the truth in them. That and he hadn't heard a difference in his heartbeat and neither had Derek, if the look he was giving Stiles was anything to go by.

"Really?"

"Really. But there is something I've to ask. Do you want me to tell my dad?"

Isaac knew, of course, that Stiles' dad was the Sheriff, there wasn't a single person in town who didn't know. And he knew what Stiles was asking. Maybe he should just say yes, but he couldn't bring himself to. The man was still his dad and he hadn't always been like that. Isaac could still remember a time when the man was a loving father, before Camden's death.

He shook his head in answer to Stiles' question.

"Besides, now, he won't be able to do anything to me anymore."

"Okay," Stiles answered before turning to Derek. "Maybe we should report the pack's meeting. I don't any us is going to have our head in the right place to talk."

Derek growled. He didn't want to do that, they needed to meet more regularly, but he knew Stiles was right. There was no way the meeting could go the right way now. He would have to talk to his betas separately. He had thought he was making progress with Scott, at least, but apparently not as much as he thought and Jackson didn't seem to want to be part of the pack. He wanted the perks of being a werewolf without any of the obligation. It was a dangerous state of mind.

"I want all of you here tomorrow, at two o'clock and there better be no being late," he grounded. "You wouldn't like the consequences."

"But it's Saturday," Scott whined.

"Do I look like I care?"

"We will be here," Allison quickly interjected before Scott had time to say anything else, because she had seen the way Derek really wasn't in the mood for her boyfriend's usual contrariness.

All of them, except for Isaac who didn't seem to be in any hurry to move, prepared to depart. Stiles still turned to their new friend, worry etched on his feature.

"You sure you're gonna be okay?" he asked once gain.

Isaac quickly acquiesced to indicate that, yes, it was going to be alright for him from now on. He did smile gently to Stiles, though, appreciating the other boy's caring attitude and Derek's features softened slightly at the exchange.

He could see that Stiles was genuinely concerned about his new pack mate and it was heartwarming to see there was at least one person who didn't question his choice of turning the teen. Even though Lydia and Allison had stayed silent, not openly disagreeing with his actions, he knew the girls were worried about attracting unwanted attention and, while he couldn't blame them, he did know what he was doing and it was nice that one person in his pack thought so too.

Stiles said his final goodbyes and left with the others. Of course, as he had not planned anything but the meeting for that evening, it left him with quite a bit of time on his hand. Allison and Scott took the opportunity to go on a date and Lydia and Jackson both decided to go home, on their own. There was no one waiting for him at the house, his dad being on shift, and he didn't feel like dwelling in old books – or even the web – right now. He decided he didn't want to do his homework either, he had the rest of the week-end for that and, quite frankly, after that disaster of a meeting, he just really needed to blow some steam.

Mostly, he really just wanted to kill Isaac's father – or most likely tell his own father so he could throw him to jail – but he had promised Isaac he wouldn't and it was, in the end, the other teen's choice. Of course, had Isaac not been turned into a werewolf, he would have warned the Sheriff but, since from now on he could defend himself, he would wait and see what would happen. Should things not change for the better, he would talk to Isaac again and convince him to alert the proper authorities.

He supposed that he could go to the firing range again. The man in charge must have been getting sick of seeing him but he had decided to go often enough in the beginning to attain a good level of proficiency in very little time and then, he would leave more time in-between visits. Considering that he didn't know how long the peace and quiet would last before something went wrong once again, it did seem to be the best way to do it.

When he parked in front of the building, he immediately spied the Argent's SUV and snorted out loud. It seemed that they were always ending up there at the same time, almost as if they had decided to rendezvous. Seriously, what were the odd?

Still, at least he would have someone to talk to. He actually liked whenever he ended up there at the same time as Chris because he seemed to be able to concentrate better with the other man there. Whenever he was alone, his mind would wander in multiple directions and, while he could still shoot, it was usually less proficient than when Chris was there to draw him back to the present. It should have been the exact opposite but go figure.

He went in quietly. It wasn't as if he was really trying to sneak up on Chris – though it would be fun if he could manage it for a change – but mostly he just wanted a chance to observe the man practice when there was no one who was supposed to be there. He always arrived after Stiles, normally, and the boy had never seen him when he was on his own. Stiles stopped a few feet shy of joining him and observed as he fired shot after shot in the dead center of the target. Damn, the man was really good which, okay, was absolutely no surprise at all.

"Are you trying to surprise me, Stiles?" Chris asked without even turning around and Stiles pouted.

That wasn't fair at all. He hadn't made any noise but, apparently, he still wasn't quiet enough to be able to sneak up on Chris. Well, he supposed that being a hunter, he had to learn to be on his guard – Constant Vigilance! – so, it wasn't exactly that unanticipated.

"No, I was just watching. I hope you don't mind," Stiles answered truthfully.

Chris shook his head.

"It's always a good thing to observe how other people handle their weapons. But I'm surprised to see you here. I was told there was a pack meeting?"

Of course, Allison would have told her dad about it. Apparently, it was one of the condition that her parents had given to let her do as she please. As long as she told them when she was going, so they would know if something was wrong and not think that she was only sneaking around with Scott, she could do whatever she wanted to with the pack.

"It was cut short."

Stiles hesitated for a second. He should have asked Derek at the meeting if the new recruit was a secret but he thought it would be better to warn Chris before he stumbled on Isaac by chance and accused them of breaking the code or something like that. They hadn't exactly discussed anything pertaining new wolves, but Stiles thought it would be better if it didn't come as a surprise for the hunter family.

"Derek added someone to the pack and Scott and Jackson really didn't take it well."

That attracted Chris' attention immediately and effectively. He frowned, not exactly surprised, but not pleased either.

"Tell me it's not another kid," he practically commanded and Stiles almost winced.

He shrugged.

"I think it would be difficult for most adults to accept Derek as their Alpha because he's really young. That and to accept the idea of werewolves in general. But I think Isaac will be fine. He seems… more accepting of pack dynamics than Scott and Jackson from what I saw. Maybe he likes the idea of family, I don't know. I really think he was a good choice."

"A good choice! Derek can't go around biting your whole class! These kids see the bite as a cool choice. They don't understand it's for life, that it's more than some superpowers and a group of friends."

Yet, Chris really wasn't okay with that and Stiles was doubly glad that particular conversation happened there and not outside, in Isaac's presence. He doubted it would have gone on well with Derek.

"Look, Isaac was told everything before he accepted the bite. And he really needed it," Stiles added softly.

They had told Jackson off for exposing Isaac's business to everyone, that it was wrong to take that choice away from him, but Stiles thought that, maybe, it would help things go more smoothly with the hunter if he knew there was a good reason for the change. Plus, Stiles doubted Chris would go around, showing Isaac he knew about it.

"Needed it?" Chris asked as Stiles had known he would.

"Isaac's dad…" Stiles begun, biting his lips, uncomfortable even if he knew it was necessary. "He's abusive. Isaac wanted the change… he doesn't want to take revenge or anything like that," he added quickly, not wanting the hunter to jump to the wrong conclusion. "He just… he just wanted to be able to defend himself, I guess, stop him. There isn't going to be any problems, Isaac doesn't seem the type, I mean he didn't even want us to tell the police. I guess he still loves his dad. But, at least, he won't get knocked around anymore."

Stiles had watched Chris as he talked, wanting to see if the man was won over by the argument. The open anger that had been written on his face at the beginning slowly faded until there was no trace of emotion left, his expression completely blank. It kind of frightened Stiles a bit, he wasn't sure what the man was thinking about, but it didn't seem pretty at all.

"Chris?" Stiles wondered when Chris didn't add anything.

"Okay, there was a good reason. I should probably go now. Thank you for telling me…"

He left quickly and Stiles was left wondering what had happened because he had been fairly sure Chris hadn't planned to leave so quickly. Of course, most parents tended to have a problem with the idea of child abuse, to that was probably it. Still, it was very weird. He would think about it more deeply later, maybe go to Lydia for her opinion.

* * *

Of course, later stopped being an option when someone decided they had had more than enough of a break apparently, and things began to heat up once again. There were talks about the sighting of a strange creature attacking a few people all over the town. It was not a wolf, that much they were certain about, but it didn't seem to be any animal known in these parts, as if used a poison to paralyze its victims. For the moment, no one had died but they couldn't count on it lasting.

Derek had called the pack for an emergency meeting but none of them had any idea of what was going on, none of them had ever heard of something like that. Lydia and Stiles hadn't even found anything in the Argent books. They were all a bit wary and they hoped to God the hunters wouldn't think they were responsible. Thankfully, Chris was certain it had nothing to do with werewolves.

Things had continued to escalate and now Stiles was going back to the firing range in an almost rage. He was just so mad at Scott he couldn't think straight and the only way he would be able to calm down enough to rest would be to destroy a target or five, since he couldn't actually shoot the boy. He was almost spitting hair. He just couldn't believe his best friend sometimes. He had nearly died and why? Because Scott was so involved in Allison that he couldn't even answer his phone for his best friend. It had been pure dumb luck that Isaac had decided to check on him and Derek when he hadn't seen them come back. That had been the only reason they made it out alive and, as it was, it had been almost too late. Stiles had been so tired…

He was still tired. His arms were aching like mad but he knew if he went home now, his father would immediately be able to tell something was wrong. There would be no way for Stiles to hide it. He was buzzing with anger and it was showing in his every move, as he slammed the jeep's door and walked decidedly towards the range. He didn't even realize he wasn't alone until he almost bumped into Chris.

"Stiles? Are you okay?"

Stiles looked up at him. He seemed genuinely concerned and that was the last straw because Chris Argent was worried about him when his own best friend didn't seem to give a damn at all. Where was the world going?

"No!" Stiles yelled and thanks god he didn't have a gun in hand because that would have been bad. "No, I'm not fine. I nearly died. Derek nearly died. And you know why? Because Scott can't get himself away from Allison long enough to answer a phone call from me. Derek and me could have drown if not for a freak chance that Isaac was there. I treaded water for two freaking hours, holding Derek up and let me tell you that man is not light, because when I tried to call Scott, he hung up before I had even time to say anything and I'm just so mad… and I…"

He couldn't talk anymore. He was so mad, so very mad, and he was beginning to feel like he usually did before panic attack. He could feel tears gathering in his eyes because the last thing he needed right now was a panic attack. He hadn't had one in years but he had never felt such rage before.

Suddenly, the maelstrom of emotion seemed to diminish because he felt arms coming around him and, before he had time to realize what was happening, he found himself flushed against Chris as the man hugged him, trying to calm him down. It should have been awkward. It should have, but Stiles felt so tired and he just let himself melt against the man's chest and finally let the tears come.

He couldn't hold back anymore. He hadn't been able to really cry, to let himself be weak, before because the only ones he could have trusted to see him like that were his dad and Scott. But Scott hadn't really been there for him since he met Allison and his dad would ask too many questions. Chris didn't say anything, though. He simply held him close and waited for the storm to pass.

Two hours later found Stiles walking out of the building, calmer than before. Chris had simply let him talk once his tears had dried, and it had felt good, so good to confide in someone, in an adult. They hadn't been any shooting done in the end, only a discussion, and Stiles found himself once again thankful that there was usually no one else but them coming to the place because it would have been weird for anyone to find both of them sitting on the floor talking but, fortunately, they hadn't been caught and the whole thing had been pretty cathartic.

Stiles was on his way home when he heard his phone alter him he had a new text. He stopped on the side of the road and consulted it. He frowned when he saw what was written.

_Pack meeting tomorrow. Erica Reyes&Vernon Boyd as new recruit?_

Shit! Okay, Derek was beginning to take too many chances, there. He could understand his reasoning concerning Erica. Quite frankly, he felt sorry for the young woman. She was so sick and her seizures were seriously dangerous for her health. He knew she would benefice from the bite and no one could dispute that, not even the hunters. Her epilepsy was sure to be death sentence in a few years time and her quality of life was absolutely null. How many times had she had to submit herself to the mocking of every other student on campus, student that apparently didn't realize how serious the situation was?

For Boyd, though, Stiles didn't know, mostly because he couldn't remember much about the guy. He knew he was in his year but, except from that, there wasn't really anything that stood out. Maybe it was a case like Isaac's, maybe there was something wrong with his life that no one knew about, but the Argent wouldn't like it, especially with the lizard-like thing that was haunting the streets.

On the other hand, Stiles knew that Derek's reasoning was that they would need the back-up if they wanted to take care of the situation before other hunters went and decided to try their hands at solving the mystery and the pack got caught in the crossfire. At least, Derek learnt from his mistakes and was going to talk to the rest of the pack before deciding to change them.

He sent back a text, telling Derek he would be there, and went back home. His father was at home but, since Stiles had respected his curfew, there was nothing the man could say. He trotted to his front door and opened.

"Hey, dad! I'm home!" he exclaimed.

His father called him back from the kitchen and Stiles' eyes grew big as he was foreseeing a disaster of epic proportion.

"Oh, god! Tell me you're not trying to cook!" he told him as he practically ran to the kitchen.

Thankfully, everything seemed to be in order and the aroma of Bolognese salsa embalmed the kitchen.

"Hey, don't diss my spaghetti. You like them," the Sheriff told him severely, agitating his spatula menacingly towards his son.

There was nothing that Stiles could say to that because, yes, it was the truth. Spaghetti was the one thing his dad had always cooked excellently and he loved them. He helped his dad by setting the table, chatting incessantly about his class and lacrosse, inane things but his dad loved to hear about it anyway,

Besides, it was the only thing he could talk about anymore, without having to lie, and he liked when his dad asked a question about homework or sport or his teacher because, at least, he could answer truthfully. The more he had to lie to his father, the more it hurt him so, whenever he could be honest, he didn't miss the opportunity. If his father thought it strange to him to be so forthcoming about things he had used to skirt around, he didn't say anything, probably glad that his son felt he could speak to him.

It was at the end of the conversation, when Stiles was walking back to his room to do his homework, that his father said something that made his heart skip a bit.

"You seem better, Stiles. These last few weeks, it was as if there was something wrong that you didn't want to tell me. I was worried but it seems you've managed to solve the problem all by yourself. I'm proud of you, son."

"Thanks, dad," Stiles answered, his throat tight and he quickly closed his door, letting himself fall against it, sliding down to the floor, because his father was wrong.

He hadn't solved the problem all by himself, he couldn't have. Chris had helped and he felt tears sting his eyes. Because he hadn't been able to go to his father, he had had to go to Allison's dad, and it hurt, it hurt so bad to think that his father had no idea he had gone to someone else, he knew that his father had even an inkling that he had confided in someone else, had someone else help instead of him, he would be extremely hurt.

However, there was nothing that could be done about it because he had to protect his father. So this would be his cross to bear and he would bear it alone.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4/12 (+epilogue)

Things calmed down lightly after that. The pack had taken the time to talk about welcoming Boyd and Erica into the pack and, while Scott was still uneasy about turning new people but slowing coming round the fact they needed more wolves and Jackson was still as bad as before, the rest had been unanimously for the new additions so the motion had passed, with the condition to wait for the right time.

As the full was approaching fast, they had decided – and Derek had agreed – that they needed to wait after. It was both Isaac and Jackson's full moon and, while Scott had some experience, he was not exactly an expert either. Adding two new wolves would be tempting fate.

Derek had taken all the humans of the pack aside and told them they had to stay away from the house during the full, for their own safety as he couldn't protect them and take care of all the betas at the same time. He knew that both Allison and Lydia wouldn't come, even without a specific warning, but he also thought that Stiles may let his curiosity win. Now, he really couldn't blame the man for thinking that. After all, it was his curiosity that had led Scott and him in the middle of the wood, looking for half a dead-boy, without knowing whether or not the killer was still in the neighborhood. He didn't always respond rationally in situation like that.

That was why, the day of the full moon, Allison sought out both Stiles and Lydia. They were in the parking lot when Allison came to them with her proposition.

"You think your parents would let you come to my place for a sleepover tonight?" she asked and Stiles chuckled because he really should have seen it coming. "We could put all of our research together and see if we can't find something new about the situation. Maybe with all of us together…"

"No problem from me," Lydia said, her mother always happy when she went to the other girl's home, because she thought she was a very good friend with a good influence.

Both girls looked at Stiles, because it would be more problematic for his dad to accept he was going for a sleepover with two girls. He was, after all, a boy.

"If your parents are going to be here, it shouldn't be a problem. It's not as if dad think anything's going to happen with you, being Scott's girlfriend and all."

They nodded and Allison confirmed her mother would be at home. She wasn't sure about her dad but it didn't really matter anyway. As long as there was some adult supervision, it would be alright.

They agreed to meet at eight at Allison's place. It would leave them the time to eat on their own and gather all their documentation, put some order into it. Thankfully, it was a Friday night, so they didn't have to worry about homework, especially since Stiles doubted his dad would have been okay with a sleepover in the middle of the week.

Dinner wasn't ready yet so Stiles reunited all of his paper, plus the few books he hadn't had yet time to read in their entireties. There was so much to skim through, but nothing seemed to pertain to their mystery creature. He just hoped the girls had had more luck than he did because it was seriously getting bad and he knew the brief respite wouldn't last long, unless the lizard-thing had just been passing through. Somehow, he didn't think it would be the case.

He shoved everything into his backpack and was glad that the excuse that he had to get Lydia back up to speed hadn't run its course yet because he really didn't know how he would have explained the whole mythological content of his bag to his father should the man had made him show it to him. He knew it wouldn't last very long, through, but maybe they could soon have a group project to work on together for one of their class.

Dinner was a strangely silent affair, as his dad was once again extremely busy with the new cases that had landed in his hand. Stiles made a few feeble attempts at getting information, mostly because he knew it was expected of him. He already knew about what had happened, thanks to the Argent having access, he didn't know how, to the case files. He doubted it had been legal but, at least, they had shared with Allison and Allison had shared with the pack.

Still, his father would be suspicious if Stiles didn't try to cajole him into telling him all about it the way he had always done. Even before Stiles had been involved with Derek and his pack, he had always had an insatiable curiosity about anything pertaining to crimes. Granted, they hadn't really been anything as serious before but, every times his dad came back home with a file, or an interesting story was floating around town, he would, without fail, try to get more out of his dad, no matter how against the law it was.

His phone beeped halfway through dinner and Stiles juggled with his fork and knife to get to the text immediately.

_Jackson didn't show up. Be careful._

Shit, why couldn't Derek have some very good news for a change? Damn. Of course, he would be careful, with a wolf that didn't show up to the den for the full moon, especially considering that Jackson had never gone through it before, but was also not the most controlled person on an everyday basis. This was bad, very bad. He just hoped he didn't attack anyone, otherwise their truce with the Argent would be forfeit. Well, either the truce or Jackson's life.

He rapidly typed up his answer, promising not to do anything stupid, like try to go looking for Jackson. Thank you, but he wasn't suicidal. Maybe if Scott was the one who had been missing, but with Jackson, even if he found him, there was no way he would be able to reason with him. The only one who would have stood a chance was Lydia, but neither he nor Allison would let her try anyway. It was way too dangerous.

"Problem?"

Stiles jumped. With his musing, he had totally forgotten his dad was still in the room and he plastered a smile on his face.

"Nope, just Lydia reminding me not to forget my notes. As if I would. I mean, seriously, do I seem like the kind of person who would forget something that important?"

The Sheriff snorted.

"Stiles, sometimes I think you would forget your head, if it wasn't attached to your body," he countered affectionately.

"Hey!" Stiles exclaimed. "True, but hey!"

John chuckled and stood up, taking his plate back to the kitchen.

"I've to go back to the station. All of us are working overtime to try and find out what happened. I want you to go straight to the Argent and stay inside. No sneaking around outside in the middle of the night. We don't know if it's an animal or a person out there, but I don't want you involved this time around, okay?"

Stiles nodded, still chewing his own food.

"Sure thing, daddy-o. Straight to Allison and inside until morning, promise."

"Good. Good night, kiddo, and have fun," the Sheriff said, brushing his hand on his son's scalp and taking his shoulder in a side-hug before leaving for the station.

He listened to his father's car leave and sighed. He didn't like lying like that and he hated that his father was investigating what he knew was something he couldn't hope to solve and would most likely end up in his death should he ever come face to face with the creature responsible for the attacks but what exactly could he do about it? Hell, even if his father knew the truth, he knew he would still investigate, still try to make the town surer because it was his job and he was way too much like Stiles to ever give up doing it.

He finished his food and washed his plate before looking at his watch. He could leave now and arrive just a little bit early at the Argent. He ran up and took his bag, checking one last time he hadn't forgotten anything – his father hadn't been so wrong about his propensity to leave things behind – and he left, locking the door behind him.

He couldn't help to worried glace he threw around him as he walked to his car. It was stupid. There was absolutely no reason for the beast to be there, or even Jackson for that matter, but he couldn't help feeling uneasy, knowing he could be attacked at any time. Nothing happened, though, and a few minutes later he was pulling up in front of the Argent house.

He ran up the steps and rang the bell. The moment the door opened, he felt his mouth go dry because it wasn't Allison that greeted him, but her mother and it really didn't matter that she wasn't out to get him, she still scared the hell out of him. There was just some kind of aura about her.

"Hey, Mrs. Argent! Allison invited me," Stiles said.

It was ridiculous but, then again, he couldn't feel anything but stupid in front of the redhead. She smiled at him and a shiver ran up his spine because he could see she didn't mean it at all. She didn't really like him, mostly she just didn't consider him worth her time and maybe that was a good time. If he wasn't a threat, then she just wouldn't care and, at least, he would find himself fighting against her.

"Yes, she told me. You can go on, I'm sure you're beginning to know the house," she said gracefully, all the while making him understand she didn't like his presence here at the moment anymore than she liked having Lydia and him around for the research sessions her husband had helped set up.

"Yep! Thanks for having me," Stiles answered because, even if she looked ready to crush him, there was really no reason not to be polite.

He almost ran up to Allison's room, trying to escape Victoria's watchful eyes and knocked on Allison's door. The girl in question opened and, apparently he was the last one to arrive because both of them were looking at him strangely.

"You look as if you have seen a ghost," Allison commented idly.

"Your mom scares the hell out of me."

It was out of his mouth before he had time to think – his brain to mouth filter having never been the best – but, quite frankly, he didn't mind saying it. He wasn't ashamed of it. It was the smart thing to be because he was certain she was the most dangerous person in the house, and the other two Argent liked him.

Lydia snorted. Well, apparently, she wasn't afraid at all but, then again, it was Lydia. She was the one people were afraid of, not the other way around. He knew Allison wouldn't be any better.

"Here I thought you would be afraid of my dad," Allison joked.

"Bit difficult to be afraid of the guy who basically let you cry all over him," he casually said and, seeing the look on their face, Allison hadn't been told about that particular encounter. "But let's move on. I've all the things I've found about lizard-like creatures – and there are more than I thought – but nothing that would correspond to our new little resistant."

Lydia seemed to be about to comment on his previous revelation but one look from Allison stopped her and, soon enough, they were all discussing the fruitless research they had done up to now. In the end, they talked for hours but found out nothing new that could help the pack out. It was annoying as hell but, unfortunately, it did seem as it was going to be for another time.

It was almost three in the morning by the time they decided to go to sleep. They were tired and nothing they looked into had given any result. They were almost beginning to read the same pages over and over again, without understanding a word out of it. It quite frankly didn't help anymore. Both Lydia and Stiles went to bed. Well, Lydia went to bed and Stiles took some blanket and pillow on the floor because, no, he wasn't going to sleep in the same bed. He could have gone to the spare room but it was better that way. Maybe it was being part of the pack, but it somehow felt wrong to be in different rooms when they were in the close quarter.

Allison went to the kitchen to get a bottle of water. The house was big and, while she didn't mind getting down to get a drink if she was thirsty during the night, it would be a bit more complicated for the other two. She was walking softly, not wanting to wake her mother up. She shouldn't have bothered because, as she was in front of the refrigerator, she heard the sound of muffled voices. Curious, she closed the door, her bottle of water in hand, and followed the murmurs to her father's study.

Strange, because her father wasn't there. Not making any noise, she stuck her ear against the closed door and recognized immediately her mother's voice.

_"No, no one knows what's attacking people. Or at least, that's what the pack says. And quite frankly, I'm not sure they would tell us if they did."_

Allison bristled at that. She had thought her mother had understood that they were all on the same side there but, apparently, it wasn't the case. She still needed to know who exactly she was talking to, because if she was requesting back-up, that meant more hunters in town.

_"No. Chris is sticking to the alliance he made with the wolves. We need someone who will act. That's why I'm calling you."_

_.._

_"Yes. That would be great. I'll see you in a few days. Thank you, Gerard."_

Shit. That was literally Allison's only thought as she quickly backed away from the door. Her mother had called her grandfather. She didn't know him, not really, but she knew her father was very wary of having him there. He was too much of a fanatic, and wouldn't like having wolves roaming freely, and she hoped that they wouldn't have him there but, apparently, they only had a few more days of peace. She needed to warn Derek tomorrow.

She quietly ran back to her room, not wanting her mother to realize she was aware of Gerard's arrival, and immediately told the others who had guessed something was wrong when she took so much time to get the water. Needless to say, none of them had a good night sleep.

* * *

Nothing happened that week-end, but it still didn't mean they were able to get much rest. Not only had Derek not been able to contact Jackson, but the news of Gerard's expected arrival was far from being a good one. They had mostly stayed in the Hale house, bringing Isaac up to speed about what little they knew about Gerard Argent and, poor Isaac, who was already wary enough of Allison's parent, didn't really like what he heard.

They had otherwise spent a quiet time. If only they didn't have so much on their mind, it may have been quite a nice time. From what Stiles knew, it was the fact that almost the whole pack was there, for once without a disagreement, that made that time so important. Because packs were supposed to be close, they were supposed to spend time together and it was something they never really had time to do just for the hell of it. They always had something else, they only came together when Derek was teaching them or there was a threat. For once, they tried to be just themselves, with Jackson as the only missing link.

Mostly, Stiles figured the lacrosse player just didn't want to hear Derek's lecture about missing the full moon. The good news was, he hadn't attacked anyone. They had been no talk of a wolf sighting and no body mauled found. At least, he hadn't put them all at risk with the hunters.

Scott was given the task to talk to him at school and Stiles could already say it would be a complete disaster but, apparently, Derek just didn't care about that, except for sending Isaac as back up. He wasn't sure whether or not that was a good thing but, at least, it made Scott and Isaac learn how to cooperate. Stiles could see that they both had the potential to become good friend given the time and he was ready to bet Derek had seen that and was using Isaac to make Scott more cooperative in the future. After all, if there was someone else he liked in the pack, a wolf, then it would make him more unlikely to turn against him in the future because Derek was fully aware that, even if he had agreed to be part of the pack and made some efforts, he still had problem at seeing him as his Alpha.

So, when Monday came by, it was with great trepidation that Stiles waited for the end of the lacrosse practice, when Scott and Isaac would make their move to get Jackson to talk. As he was watching how their talk went, from afar as he really didn't want to get caught in the middle of a brawl, his vision was suddenly obscured.

He startled and looked away from the three werewolves to find himself face to face with another player.

"Danny! My man, what are you doing still here?"

Okay, it may not have been the most intelligent thing to say but he was a bit surprised. He liked Danny just fine but he had gotten the impression the goalie really didn't like him, had barely tolerated him during their chemistry project. He seemed to find Stiles mostly irritating and not worth much of his time. There had worked together for school and there had been the memorable moment of Derek's striptease in his room but, except from that, they didn't really have much contact.

"Waiting for Jackson but, since he seems rather busy at the moment, I wanted to talk to you. I don't know what's going on but I know you know and I want to know because that Jackson, the Jackson I've seen these last few weeks, that's not my friend."

Stiles' shoulder slumped. He wanted to tell Danny, really he did. Mostly because Danny was right, things had changed for Jackson and he knew it left Danny out in the cold. Jackson was Danny's best friend and now, one of them had a secret they couldn't share and it wasn't fair to him, it wasn't fair at all. If at least Jackson was making an effort to act normal with his friend, but he wasn't and it really was no wonder that Danny had realized something was wrong.

Add to that everything that had happened when they were looking for Peter and he knew it wasn't difficult to work out Stiles was part of whatever it was. Especially since he was the one to ask Danny to trace that text.

"It's not something I can decide to tell you," Stiles said truthfully, knowing denying wouldn't do any good anyway. "I know you have question and I know it's not fair to you but I really can't tell you right now."

Danny didn't seem to like that answer.

"Damn it, Stiles, it's Jackson we are talking about!"

"I know. And I would tell you if I could. Look, I'll ask if you can be let in on it. I promise I will and the moment I get the permission I'll tell you everything I know. But you have to be sure that's what you want because once you know, there really is no going back, no matter how cliché that sound."

"I want to know. I don't care if it changes everything but I can't go on like this, without knowing what's going on with my own best friend. I mean, when it was just you and McCall, that was okay even if Jackson went a bit overboard trying to find out what you two were up to but now he's in and so are Allison and Lydia and even Isaac."

Stiles knew. Danny was feeling left out and go knew it wasn't a good feeling. However, he really didn't want to risk telling the other teen without getting Derek's approval first. He had to respect the fact that he was the Alpha if he wanted things to go smoothly.

"I'll ask."

"I supposed it's 'Miguel' you need to ask," Danny said, using hand motions to highlight the fact he knew perfectly well there was no cousin Miguel.

Stiles grimaced at the memory.

"Derek. Derek Hale, which would be why I really couldn't tell you his real name at the time, what with him being a murder suspect and my dad being the Sheriff."

Danny snorted.

"Ask him, but if he says so, you get me in contact with him because I need to know and I will convince him one way or another."

There was really nothing Stiles could do except agree to the conditions because he knew that Danny would accept nothing less. The man was a devoted friend and there was no way he would stop looking before he knew what was happening with Jackson.

Neither teen had noticed they had an eavesdropper. Derek, who was standing far enough not to be seen by anyone at the school, had been listening attentively. He had been there to see how Isaac and Scott would tackle the situation with Jackson but his attention had been attracted by Stiles' voice and his conversation with Danny.

He was relieved to see Stiles hadn't gone against his authority by outright telling Danny what he wanted to know but had instead told him he would ask. Yet, he would also hear the determination in Danny's voice and understood his frustration, knowing that Jackson was his best friend.

Derek didn't know if they could afford to have Danny in the know. He wouldn't ask him to become a wolf because, no matter what the rest of his pack seemed to think, he wasn't out to make every teen a wolf, otherwise he would have tried to convince Stiles. No, he wanted to ask those who he thought the bite could help. It clearly wasn't the case for Danny. From the little he had seen of the kid, he seemed like he was well-integrated and felt good in his own skin. There was no need to change that.

On the other hand, he wouldn't mind having more human in the pack either and, maybe having Danny in would help Jackson. It could be a good selling point to get the young man to join the pack in a more definitive way.

Of course, he hadn't forgotten how Danny had been able to help Stiles and him track Peter back then. Now, Derek was the more technology-savvy person but he couldn't deny that in this day and age, it was an important tool to master and the fact that Danny seemed to be, according to Stiles at least, a good hacker could be a hell of an ace.

He would, of course, have to think some more about it but, for the moment, the pros greatly surpassed the cons and the fact that Stiles himself thought he could benefice from it was a hell of a pros. The young man, as annoying as he was at times, had proved he was an extremely good addition to the pack and had that instinct of protection they needed from their member. If he had thought Danny may have been a threat to them, he would have denied everything instead of just telling him he had to wait for permission.

Well, Derek would wait for Stiles to come to him about it and then discuss it with the rest of the pack. While he would take the final decision, there was no need for him to spring it on everyone without a warning as he had done with Isaac. He could, after all, learn from his mistake, no matter what most people seemed to think.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5/12 (+epilogue)

The discussion between Stiles and Derek concerning Danny's eventual inclusion in the pack nearly turned out to be a disaster of epic proportion. Strangely enough, it hadn't been because they couldn't find a way to agree on anything. They had actually pretty much immediately concluded that they were both for introducing him to the truth, with the reserve, of course, that the others were not absolutely against it, something that could be debated at a later date and, quite frankly, Stiles was almost sure it would be okay with the large majority of the pack, especially considering they wanted to bring him in as another human and not a wolf.

No, the real problem had been the Sheriff's unexpected return.

Derek and Stiles had met in Stiles' room. It had been Stiles' idea because, the more they could be away from the Hale house, the better in his opinion. Seriously, that half-burnt house was not a place he felt comfortable in. It wasn't because of the memories that sometimes planned as a ghost in the air, though it really didn't help any, but he could help feel scared an accident was going to happen and, if they could avoid it, he would make sure they did.

The problem was, when he had told Derek to come there, he had counted on his father being away most of the night because of his caseload. Unfortunately for him, the man had been asked – and you can read ordered really – by his subordinates to, at least, take a few hours of sleep while they stayed to man the station, because it was becoming extremely obvious to everyone he needed the rest.

Derek had been so focused on the topic at hand that he hadn't taken notice of the car pulling up in the driveway and, when the two of them heard the front door slam close, they had looked at each other with a look of almost comical panic. They knew the light in the Stiles' room had been visible from the outside, which meant the Sheriff knew his son wasn't sleeping yet and, therefore, would probably come straight to his room to say goodnight.

Derek practically threw himself outside the, thankfully, open window, just in time for Stiles' father to miss catching sight of him as he opened the door, the Sheriff saw his son sitting on his bed, apparently doing nothing at all which, considering Stiles' habits of doing a dozen things all at once, was pretty peculiar to say the least. Luckily, since it was so late in the night, he had pretended he had been on the verge of going to bed and added, to butter up to his dad, that he was aware he shouldn't stay up so late.

Still, that near-miss had been a wake-up call. They couldn't go on like that, meeting at their own houses and hoping their parents would stay oblivious to their activities. It was more than obvious they needed an actual place to go to and so they only had one choice. A choice that Lydia and Stiles had been elected to talk about to Derek, mostly because the whole pack had deemed them the least likely to get murdered by their Alpha for even suggesting it.

So, at the end of the next pack meeting, while everyone made sure to fill out quickly, Lydia and Stiles stayed behind. Derek almost sighed out loud, because he knew he wasn't going to like it, especially considering the look the rest of his pack were sending to the two humans. However, he had taken the resolution he was going to be an Alpha who would listen to what his pack had to say, the same way his father had before hum, therefore it meant he was going to stay calm and listen patiently even if he wanted to bang his head against the wall as he did so.

"What do you want?" he asked briskly; just because he was going to listen didn't mean that he had to look happy about it.

"Well, look, I know you won't like it and we do understand. Really, we do, but…"

"Stiles, get to the point!" Derek almost growled.

"What Stiles means to say is that you need to renovate the house, preferably before it caves in on one of us."

"No."

It was a one word answer, the one they had both been expecting, but were absolutely not going to take as a final answer, not on something that important.

"Look, Derek, you, Isaac, Scott, Jackson, you don't have to worry about injuries. If the roof caves in, or a plank drops, or a staircase collapse, you will heal. Bully for you, but Allison, Lydia and I… we won't and this house has been condemned by the authorities for a damn good reason. It's a danger to anyone who comes in. why do you think we always meet elsewhere, except when you summon us? The moment we come here, we're in danger. I know you probably don't want to change things, that this is difficult for you, but we can't go on like this and we need a place we can all meet without getting caught. So unless you want to rent another place…"

Derek didn't like it at all but he guessed he had also never really seen things from their point of view. He had been a wolf all his life, even if some members of his family were human, their frailties was more abstract and he really didn't know how to worry about getting hurt by mundane things because, as Stiles said, he healed but he could hear in Stiles' heartbeat that he was saying the truth, that they were genuinely afraid of getting injured in an accident whenever they came there and that this was the reason they never came there to relax, not without Derek asking it of them. All this time, he had thought they just didn't want to see him unless it was needed for pack business, but now…. Well, that changed things.

"You're really afraid of getting hurt?"

"We could die Derek," Lydia said, in her usual blunt manner. "And I quite frankly didn't survive your psychopath of an uncle to be killed by a house falling down on me."

It was not exactly the most tactful way to put it but, at least, it had the merit of getting the message through.

"You would come here more often if it was rebuilt?" he still asked for confirmation, aware that he wasn't completely able to keep hope from streaking his voice.

Lydia snorted and Stiles just flailed.

"Of course, we would. You think it's normal that the only place we can talk about all that stuff without worrying about who may hear us is the Argent house? Because I tell you Derek, us having to go to the hunter's house for that is pretty fucked up."

Derek really couldn't say he was wrong. He wasn't sure he was ready for this but… he had to move on. He had a new pack now and it really wasn't fair on them to make them pay for his own mistake.

"I'll look around and begin to make arrangements. But if I'm doing this, I'm counting on all of you to help," Derek said and it was a veiled order and not a request.

Neither Lydia nor Stiles contradicted him. They both knew it cost him to accept to rebuild the house so, if all he asked of them was to help out, it was the least they could do.

"Talk to Jackson. He'll be able to direct you to some very qualified people," Lydia said. "Then tell us what you need us to do."

That was the last of the conversation. Lydia and Stiles excused themselves, knowing that Derek would need to be left alone for a while. He would have to say goodbye to the memories he had of his old house. Maybe it would help him lay some ghost at rest and he would finally be free, not of the grief, but perhaps of the guilt of having survived when none of his family did.

Besides, they had somewhere else to be. After all, they had told Chris they would come by for a 'study session'. Stiles had almost snorted at that – mostly because of the number of time Scott and Allison had used that particular excuse to cover their dates – but it was a good excuse. At least, that was what he would tell anyone who would ask him what he did there and wasn't aware of the truth. It wasn't as if they could continue for very long, they knew about the imminent arrival of Gerard Argent, thanks to Allison's snooping, and it would probably make it too difficult for them to meet there. At least, the decision to renovate the house couldn't have come at a better time.

Stiles parked his jeep in the Argent's driveway and both teens walked to the front door, waiting for Chris to let them in. They were beginning to get into a routine by now, as they had done the same many times before. Chris would be waiting for them, ready with some books that, he thought, may contain the answer to the current Beacon Hills mystery.

They had only been working for about half an hour before Chris finally asked the question that had been on his mind since he had seen the way Lydia and Stiles had plunged into his tomes with a fervor they had never showed before. Of course, they had always been enthusiastic and had even doubled their effort since the problems had begun, but they had never before skim through as if they wouldn't have enough time to finish.

"Okay, what's going on? Is there a deadline I'm not aware of? You're reading through this so fast, you must not be able to register half of what you see."

"You should be the one to tell us," Lydia said without even lifting her eyes while Stiles rolled his, and took the time to actually answer.

"We don't think it would be a good idea to continue to meet there once Allison's grandfather is there and since that's going to be soon…"

He stopped his sentence when he saw Chris blink in confusion and the abrupt end of Stiles' speech finally made Lydia look up. Both of them had their eyes riveted on their friend's father, a bit surprised at his reaction.

"What are you talking about?" he finally asked. "I know we have discussed the possibility of my father coming there but there's nothing sure about it yet. I would have told you."

"Eh…"

It may not have been the most intelligent thing to say but, quite frankly, Stiles was a bit at a loss on how to answer to that because, apparently, the Argent were even more fucked up that he had thought. It was more than obvious Chris had absolutely no idea that his father was on the way and the fact that Victoria hadn't told him was what alerted Stiles that something was very wrong with this scenario.

"He's on the way. Your wife called him," Lydia stated and Stiles had to admit, even he wouldn't have been that blunt and he was the one who had basically told the guy his sister was a psychopath.

"When?" the man asked, blanching.

"Allison heard her on the last full moon," Stiles answered. "She told us right away but we thought you knew about it."

It was Stiles' way of apologizing for springing this on the man. He seemed really out of it, though, and Stiles was going to add something but he didn't have time.

"Well, I'll talk to Victoria tonight and ask her about it. Let's go back to the subject."

He went back to his book and Lydia and Stiles exchanged a loaded look but decided, in the end, to stay silent. It really wasn't any of their business and they had other problems to think about. For the next three hours, only the noise of pen scratching on paper broke the tense silence.

Suddenly, they heard a car pull up in the driveway and all three of them stopped their reading.

"Huh," Stiles blinked. "I didn't think Allison would be back so soon."

They all knew it couldn't be Victoria, as she was already in the house, even if she had chosen not to show herself from the moment the kids had arrived, so it stood to reason it should have been their friend. Except that it wasn't.

The door opened on an older man and Stiles' breathe caught because there was only one possibility for who the man was and, unfortunately, that was Gerard Argent. Lydia was able to catch herself before her reaction showed on her face and Stiles had to admire her acting skills because no one would be able to see she was anything but perfectly at ease with the situation as the man made his way up to them.

Chris almost jumped on his feet to greet the man but both Lydia and Stiles witnessed the honest to god fear on his face the moment he had caught sight of him. It had been immediately covered by his usual air of congeniality and Stiles doubted that anyone who hadn't spent time with the man would have observed the reaction.

"Dad! How are you?" Chris asked while basically shielding both Lydia and Stiles by stepping in front of the table.

Stiles took notice and begun to gather all his paper and put them in his bag in a rush. Lydia followed suit and it didn't take long before they had finished clearing the table from their stuff. Only the books were left where they were and both teens got up.

"Are you already leaving? We didn't even have time to be introduced," Gerard said in a friendly voice, stepping around his son.

Stiles reacted immediately because, if the man was playing nice for the moment, then there was really no need to antagonize him. The situation would end up badly soon enough, he was certain of it, so he was more than okay for the peace to stand for a little while longer.

"I'm Stiles," he introduced himself, proffering his hand. "And this is Lydia. We're friends of Allison," he added, explaining their presence in the house, even though the person in question wasn't there.

"But Allison is not there," the man said, echoing his thoughts.

"Well, she was supposed to meet us, but she probably forgot," Lydia interjected smoothly. "She's still in the sickeningly sweet phase with her boyfriend."

"God knows Scott forget our plan often enough when he's with Allison," Stiles completed. "But I guess if she hasn't showed up yet, it's a bit stupid for us to still wait. Could you tell her we left, Mister Argent?" Stiles asked Chris, making sure not to be too familiar with the man.

Chris turned to him and Stiles could see the thank you in his eyes.

"Of course. Now go, both of you. I'll tell Allison to call you," he said and the message was clear enough.

They needed to leave and do so as soon as possible. They should also not try and contact him or Allison before they contacted them first. They both said their goodbye to Chris and Gerard, still acting as if there was nothing wrong with the older man's presence and they could only hope they had managed to fool him

Both teens didn't stop until they were in Stiles' jeep and well on the way to the Sheriff's house.

"Holy hell!" Stiles exclaimed as soon as the Argent house was out of sight. "Did you find that as nerve-wrecking as me?"

Lydia was not one to admit to be less than perfectly fine in any situation but, this time, she could only agree with him.

"Yes. There is something wrong with that man. I don't know what but I can feel it. He's hiding something."

Stiles nodded. Yes, he was hiding something and his sole presence in the room had been more than enough to chill him. He was more afraid than he had been when face to face with Peter and that was saying something. Maybe it was the fact that Peter hadn't tried to pretend to be anything else than a psychopath, but Gerard could have passed for the good old grandfather coming to visit without anyone being any the wiser. Except, of course, that they knew the truth.

Still, it was the look of fear in Chris' eyes that bothered Stiles the most. Of course, Allison had told them her dad didn't want Gerard to come, that he was a bit wary of him because of his fascination with hunting werewolves, but what he had seen there was not wariness, it was outright fear and there must have been another reason because, really, for someone like Chris to be as terrified as someone as he had showed himself to be, well…. Stiles wasn't sure he wanted to know but he was fairly sure he was going to find out because he wouldn't be able to let it go. He had to find what secret Gerard Argent was hiding and if it could be dangerous for the pack.

There was almost no other word exchanged between Lydia and Stiles, except for her asking him to drive her back at her own house instead of going to Stiles'. He drove her and then went straight back home. Luckily for him, his father wasn't there and he didn't have to pretend not to have anything on his mind as he let himself fall on the bed.

He stayed still for a few seconds and then jumped to his computer, turning it on. He was going to open the internet browser and see if there was anything he could find on Gerard Argent when a message popped up, indicating he received an e-mail not long ago.

He frowned when he saw that the sender was Chris. It hadn't even been an hour since the moment they had left, why the hell would he send a mail now of all time? There was a hint of question on how he had gotten his mail address but, then again, he shouldn't have been overly surprised. He opened it immediately.

_Stiles,_

_I'm sorry to do that, but Lydia and you can't come back to the house. Actually, the house is off-limit to everyone in the pack from now on. I'm really sorry._

_Chris_

Well, shit. That really, really, wasn't good at all. He had known the research sessions would stop but for the man to literally forbid them to come anymore was going a bit overboard. Especially considering he included the humans in the warning.

Stiles closed the mail and hesitated for a second. He knew that Allison wasn't supposed to go home yet. She was actually having dinner with the McCall tonight, but he wasn't sure if Chris had contacted her about Gerard arriving and he didn't want Scott to find himself face to face with the man as he walked his girlfriend back home. Eventually, he took a decision and grabbed his cell phone.

_Gerard's here. Your dad's freaking out. Don't let Scott drive back with you._

He sent it to Allison because he, quite frankly, didn't trust Scott to actually look at his phone if Allison was in his presence. At least, the young woman still checked frequently to know if there was anything going on. She would make sure nothing happened to Scott, that he didn't do anything stupid like going through her window to spend some more time in her room.

While Chris more or less accepted it and Victoria pretended not to know, but Stiles was not so sure Gerard would be as gracious, especially considering Victoria had probably told him about his werewolf statute. It was a freaking mess.

"Fuck," he murmured under his breath and nearly had a heart attack when someone answered him, as he had thought he was alone in his room.

"What happened?"

"Shit!" Stiles exclaimed, whirling around and coming face to face with his Alpha. "You can't keep doing that, Derek. One of these day, my heart is actually going to stop. Make some noise when you come in. or better yet, just use the front door. You know my dad is not here."

Derek shrugged, unconcerned.

"Habit. Now, tell me what happened."

"Gerard Argent is here," he simply said. "And he's… I don't know. He freaks me out."

"Did he do something?"

"You mean except for being a very polite man, inquiring about his granddaughter's friends? No, he didn't. I don't know. I can't put my finger on it but I really wouldn't want to be left alone with him, if you know what I mean."

He was reclining back in his desk chair and looking at Derek, practically begging him to understand exactly what he meant because he had no idea how to actually explain it in words. It wasn't anything the man had said or done, because none of his action could be considered suspicious, it was just a feeling, a feeling that shouldn't have meant anything to anyone but Derek nodded, looking somber and all too serious.

"I don't care if you think it's not important, but if there is anything more about that feeling, even if you can't put it in word, you call me and you tell me. We can't afford to take any risk."

Stiles nodded. Yes, he would do that immediately should he have anything more to say.

"Is there something else?" Derek asked, seeing Stiles still troubled.

Stiles hesitated for a second, but he didn't want to talk too much about Chris with Derek because it really wasn't his place to say anything and, while the picture in his mind was becoming clearer and clearer – and not one he liked at all, all he really had were speculations and he didn't think it was relevant to the werewolf situation anyway.

"No, nothing," he sighed. "So, what brings you to my neck of the wood, Sourwolf? Because unless you happen to be psychic, you couldn't have known I would have anything to report."

"Don't call me that," Derek growled before deflating slightly and sitting down on the bed.

That kind of worried Stiles a bit and he frowned. It wasn't like Derek to show that much emotion, except for anger and irritation. He stood up and went to sit next to him. He risked putting a hand on the werewolf leather-clad arm and was glad to see it wasn't shaken off immediately.

"Derek?"

"I've contacted a company for the renovation of the house," be begun softly. "For the moment, they are going to come and see with me what kind of final result I'm expecting but the repairs should begin soon."

That took the wind straight out of Stiles. He knew Derek wouldn't take long but he hadn't thought he would go straight after the meeting. As if he had read his thoughts, Derek explained.

"I knew I wouldn't be able to do it if I waited but you and Lydia were right. If I want to bring you all together as a pack, I need to provide a place and a stable one."

He was looking down, not meeting Stiles' eyes and the younger man just squeezed the arm in his hand a bit. That must have been difficult for Derek to do and the worse was still to come, he knew.

"Do you want me to go with you when the workers come? Or someone else from the pack? You don't have to do it alone, you know."

Derek turned to look at Stiles and Stiles let himself be studied. He had nothing to hide. His offer was a genuine one and he really believed Derek shouldn't be alone when people came to destroy what was left of his house to rebuild another one. It would be terrible.

Derek seemed to find what he was looking for in his eyes because he let one of his rare smiles show on his face, softening his features and letting Stiles see a shadow of the boy he must have been before Kate Argent irrevocably messed up his life.

"You. You can come," Derek agreed.


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6/12 (+epilogue)

The morning after found Stiles pacing nervously at the entrance of the school, waiting for Allison to show up. He needed to talk to her and it, quite frankly, couldn't wait at all. If he hadn't been told expressly by Chris not to initiate any contact, he would have called her as soon as she had been home the night before. Of course, he couldn't take the risk Gerard would be able to overhear.

Eventually, Stiles saw the Argent SUV pull into the parking lot of the school and watched as Allison got out of the passenger side. Apparently, her dad had decided to driver her today. He didn't do it all that often anymore, not as much as he had done so the first few months of their living in Beacon Hills, but it was still pretty regularly. It didn't surprise Stiles much that he had chosen today of all days to do so.

He noticed when Allison first saw him and she jogged rapidly until she was next to him.

"Thanks for the head up, yesterday," she said in guise of good morning. "And you were right, my dad was freaking out. I thought both my parents were keeping me out of the loop. I didn't know my dad had no idea Gerard was coming. I feel bad for not telling him."

Stiles nodded.

"Yep, that was so awkward yesterday. Anyway, I need to know all you can tell me about him. There is something wrong and I can't put my finger on it.

"I know what you mean!" Allison exclaimed. "I haven't seen him very often, but he gives me the creeps more than he ever did before. I mean, I never really liked him but yesterday, brr…."

She seemed really freaked out. He supposed he would to too if he had to stay in the same house, with that man. However, their mutual feeling about him aside, it still wasn't enough to prove that there was anything wrong with the guy and they needed more information.

"I will try to snoop around," Allison said when Stiles remarked that much,

"Be careful. I don't know if the fact you're his granddaughter would actually stop him from hurting you but, somehow, I doubt it."

Allison nodded. She had gotten the exact same impression and the fact that her dad had never wanted her to get to know Gerard didn't reassure her any.

"I'm not the only one who will need to be careful around him, through. All of us are in the same boat here," she warned.

"Well, yeah, obviously," Stiles answered. "But you're the only one who will have to be in extended contact with him. I mean, I know we'll probably see him around town, but it shouldn't be that difficult to stay away… What?"

He had been surprised by her shaking her head. What was she going on about now? Of course, they would just have to stay away. It was the most logical thing to do and it wouldn't be too difficult to avoid the Argent house.

"You don't understand. He's not just a guest in our house, visiting family in Beacon Hills. He did things right when he chose to come here. That's why it took him so long. He's our new principal."

The new dumbfounded Stiles. For a second, he thought he wouldn't be able to breathe anymore. He hadn't had a panic attack in year but, for second time in the span of a few weeks, he found himself close to one. He tried to calm himself as best as he could. It really wouldn't do to have to go to the nurse for that, especially considering the new principal would probably we warned immediately that something was wrong with one of his students.

Fuck! How had the man even managed to do that? You couldn't just waltz in town and be able to take over such a position. Even if there was an opening, there must have been some work involved and he was fairly sure Gerard couldn't afford to use illegal means. So it must have been something else. But what?

"Stiles?" Allison asked, concern etched in her voice as she saw him blanch.

"I'm fine. I'm fine. I just wasn't expecting that."

"Me neither. When Gerard told us last night, I got the impression mom already knew because she didn't seem all that surprised but dad nearly choked on his wine. How do you think he was able to convince the school board?"

She looked as curious as Stiles felt and for good reason.

"You think he may have already been known in Beacon Hills, by the people in charge of appointing the position?" she continued. "I mean, when we came here, the house was already filled with furniture that belonged to the family. The house was already in our name, too, so…"

"So your family has been there before," Stiles concluded for her. "Gerard has been there before. Do you think it may have been when your dad was a kid? I mean, it must have been before you were born or you would know, right?"

Allison nodded, seeming thoughtful.

"It's possible. Some of the things my dad and Kate said, I never thought much about it at the time, but now, looking back, it was as if both of them knew the town already."

Stiles thought about it.

"Well, we already knew that Kate was there around six years ago, so that may account for her but your dad wasn't in Beacon Hills during the whole Hale fire debacle, so…"

"So probably before. It would be easier if I could just ask him but I can't because he will know I'm looking into Gerard and he isn't going to help."

"It's okay, Alli, you gave me plenty of information. I'm going to see what I can find about Gerard's past with our little town and I'm keeping you in the loop, okay?"

She nodded and they both went on their respective classes. They couldn't afford to be late or caught playing hooky anymore, not with Gerard inside the school. They also had to warn the others because Gerard was sure to know the identity of the wolves and he would have them under a very close watch.

"Scott and Jackson really have to be more careful. Not like they were before the whole showdown with Peter," Allison murmured as they were walking through the halls. "Isaac should be safe as long as he doesn't stand too close to us. There is no way for Gerard to know he's a wolf unless he gets noticed."

"What?" Stiles exclaimed before looking around, seeing some people looking at him strangely because of his outburst. "What do you mean he's not at risk?" he repeated a bit more quietly.

"Well, mom and dad told him all about the pack. Well, mom did and dad let him know she was telling the truth but they don't know about Isaac."

"I told your dad when Isaac was changed," Stiles said with a frown. "I thought he would have told your mom."

Allison looked stricken for a second, even if it was pretty good news for the pack, and Stiles could understand why. It had nothing to do with Isaac, that she was happy about, but apparently both her parents were keeping secrets from each other and that said a lot about the state of their marriage. He really hoped Allison wouldn't be caught in a crossfire between the whole Argent family.

"We need to talk about it later," Stiles said as they finally reached their class and Allison nodded, still looking somewhat perturbed.

That new piece of information ran through Stiles' mind during the whole day. He decided that, once his lessons were over with, he would go to the school library and sent a quick text in between class to Derek, telling him he needed to follow a lead about Gerard after school and he would see him later since the werewolf was staying in his room during the renovation, hidden from his father.

One would have thought that it would be a bad decision for Derek to stay with the Sheriff's kids given his past, especially considering that the man in question didn't know about it at all, but luckily, with the new strings of attacks, he was less and less at home as time went by, and when he was, he was so tired he wasn't exactly aware of what was going on his own home.

Derek only answered with an 'okay' and Stiles took that as the benediction to do as he pleased. He would have asked the librarian to direct him towards the right place, but he really didn't feel like risking anything he did going back to Gerard and he was pretty certain the librarian would gossip about a kid asking to see information about former workers.

He found the archive containing the school papers pretty quickly. Thank God for American's habit of having reporter everywhere, even those in-training in high school, because there were a lot of articles, going back to years and years before.

Hours and hours of going though newspaper after newspaper, going back in time until, eventually, he found an article about Gerard Argent, announcing the fact the man had become the new principal after an early retirement from his predecessor. Stiles read the article with avidity but the only thing that really stood out was the fact the man became principal in the middle of the school year.

Stiles frowned. That was weird, especially considering the fact the paper only mentioned an early retirement from the former principal, no talk about an illness, or family problems or any outside circumstance that would have prevented it to wait until the new school year. It was strange, very strange.

There had been also no reason for Gerard to take that position. Stiles ran through the rest of the newspapers from that month and the few before and after, but there was nothing relevant. If there had been murder or strange death or disappearance, they would have been mentioned anyway, even if it was only the school paper. An inspired student, wanting to prove he could make a story, would have run with it.

The young man still made a copy of the article with the library photocopy machine and put everything back into place. He folded the paper and shoved it at the bottom of his backpack. He was going to leave and go back to his place to tell Derek about what little he had found when he overheard two students discussing about the year book and what kind of font they wanted. Probably those in charge of actually making it.

The very first thought that came to Stiles' mind was _god no, not the yearbooks pictures_ because he really hated that time of the year more than anything. Quite frankly, it was the bête noire of every unpopular student. The second one was that he was a genius.

Nearly running another student over, he whirled around and went straight back to the library, running towards the shelves where the older yearbooks were arranged. He looked for the one concerning the year Gerard had been principal. It took him a few minutes but, finally, he had the one he was looking for and he skimmed through the pages.

There was a picture of Gerard Argent who had, apparently, been an extremely good principal and the text told that they were sorry to see him go so soon but were grateful for him to have taken over during the few months after his predecessor's unexpected decision to resign. Personally, Stiels thought he had been blackmailed into it but that was only his opinion. At least, he knew now why the man had been very easily given the position. If he had been that good back then, there was no reason for anyone to doubt his capacity of managing the school once again.

He continued going through the pages and ended up on the pages related to the student body. He found Chris' picture, which explained why Gerard was interested in high school, to some level at least. However, it didn't explain why the decision had come in the middle of the year. One would have thought if he had wanted to keep an eye on his son, he wouldn't have waited that long and if he had had no interest in doing so before, why was it suddenly so important.

Stiles frowned and went on turning pages after pages. He was almost not watching anymore, automatically continuing skimming, because he didn't think he would find anything when a picture attracted his attention. Mouth going dry, he became more attentive and the young face on the picture was suddenly replaced by the one in his memories. Was it really? He looked at the name neatly typed up under it.

_Peter Hale._

It couldn't be a coincidence, right? The fact that Peter Hale had been at school at the same time must have meant something, but what exactly? Except for the fact that Chris and Peter had known each other way before that business at the beginning of the year, even if neither of them had said anything about it. However, the same question was still valid because Peter would have been there at the beginning of the year, too. Unless Chris had reported something about Peter that made Gerard wants to keep an eye on him.

"Are you interested in someone in particular?" someone asked from behind him and he was startled to see the librarian.

He hadn't even heard her coming and he wasn't sure what to answer. He couldn't tell the truth and say that he was interested in their new principal and looked back at the page.

"Peter Hale," he blurted out before rushing to explain it one way or another. "I mean…. I've seen Derek around and I know he misses his uncle since he disappeared. I was just looking for information on the man."

"He was a nice kid," the woman said and Stiles realized that she must already have been working there at the time. "A bit of a loner, though. I'm not surprised not a lot of people manifested themselves at the hospital when he was there. He stayed mostly with his family."

Stiles nodded. That wasn't very surprising. He supposed it was to avoid the risk of anyone stumbling on their secret. After all, he himself only hung out with the pack and didn't try to make any new friend anymore.

"Though it was surprised to hear Chris never went to see him," the woman continued, oblivious to Stiles musing, and he startled visibly.

He turned to her and gaped.

"Chris? As in Mister Argent?" he questioned.

"Yes, these two were pretty good friends for a while. They stopped talking pretty suddenly, though. I mean, one day they were thick as thieves, the next they avoided each other. I guess whatever happened between them must have been pretty bad for it to go on for that long, even with Peter in a coma."

"Yeah," Stiles agreed, a bit out of it. "Must have been. Well, thank you, Ma'am, I'll make sure to tell Derek. Maybe it would help him some."

"You do that. Don't forget to put the book back" she said as he was almost running out.

Well, that had been fortuitous to say the least, Stiles realized. At least now he knew why Gerard had gotten into the position back then. There must have been rumors and Gerard must not have liked it very much to learn that his son was friend with a werewolf. The question was why had Chris obeyed to an interdiction like this? Had Gerard threatened Peter? Or was there something else? He didn't really have the best mental pictures of this, considering all the other clues.

He made it home in record time and basically ran up the stairs, almost tripping in his hast to get to Derek. The wolf had stood up as soon as he had heard the boy's quick step and was ready to act, seeming to think something was wrong. He almost sighed in relief when he saw there was no wound on Stiles and that it was only excitement that made him act and not fear.

"What did you find?" Derek asked without even taking the time to say hello.

"Well, Gerard Argent becoming the principal is not a first. He already did something like that when he lived here, twenty-two years ago."

Derek frowned as he mentally did the calculation.

"Twenty-two? That was when Peter was in high school."

"Yep," Stiles confirmed. "Not only Peter, though, Chris also."

Derek blinked. That was a surprise as he hadn't know the two had known each other either. He cocked his head at Stiles, asking him to elaborate on the point.

"It seemed that they were friends, once upon a time. Guess Allison is not the only one in the family capable of ignoring the werewolf thing. Anyway, that friendship stopped when Gerard became principal and the Argent left town at the end of the school year. There is nothing I can use against Gerard, though. From what I've found, he was an awesome principal: not a single complaint against him, less bullying than usual…. Anyway, nothing that could help us. I suppose we could try to look up his police record, to see if there is something, but…"

"But we would need Danny," Derek finished for him, knowing what he was going to say. "Alright, call him."

Stiles' eyes widened. Did that really mean what he thought it meant? Because that would be just awesome. If they could tell Danny everything, then he was almost certain he would have to beg the computer genius to hack for him because, as long as it would help Jackson, he would do it a heartbeat.

"Really?"

Derek nodded once, decisively.

"I talked with the pack, one by one. They all think adding Danny is a good idea, except for Jackson. He wants to protect him by keeping him in the dark."

Stiles really wanted to say something against the other boy but he didn't exactly have a leg to stand on.

"My decision is made. Call him, and we will tell him everything."

"You're the best!" Stiles exclaimed before digging in his pocket for his cell phone and calling Danny.

Derek snorted at the show of impatience but stayed silent as the other boy answered the call after the third ring.

"Stiles? What do you want?" Danny asked, his tone light enough that Stiles didn't take the harshness of his words at face value; it seemed more genuine curiosity than exasperation for once.

"Can you come to my house?" Stiles asked.

"Now? It's not because you want me to hack into something again?"

"No! Well… yes, actually, but that's not the point. I talked with Derek and I can tell you everything about what's been going on."

"I'll be right there," as the only answer Stiles got before Danny hung up and he looked at his cell phone with a grimace and a offended frown.

"Well, that was rude."

Derek snorted again. Only Stiles could drop a bombshell like this on someone else and then take offense at their rudeness when they showed their impatience to have the truth known to them. It was hardly as if Stiles was usually better.

"So, we're telling Danny everything. What happens if he asks for the bite?"

They hadn't really talked about that possibility, mainly because Derek didn't think Danny would have a reason to want to become a wolf but there was no denying that the teen could want to become one, if only to keep us with his friends.

"Depends on his reasoning. I'm not accepting immediately but if he can give me a good argument, and shows that he has really thought about it, then maybe yes."

Stiles nodded. That was fair, even if he didn't think they should be turning too many werewolves at school as long as Gerard was there. There was already Erica and Boyd, who were still on the fence, and would probably join the pack soon. It wouldn't go over too well if another one joined the group and Gerard noticed. For the moment, it was already a miracle he didn't know about Isaac.

It took so little time for Danny to show up that Stiles found himself tempted to make a joke about speed tickets and his dad but refrained, mostly because he didn't want Danny to kill him and given how tense he looked at the moment, almost ready to burst when he was usually so calm, it let Stiles know that it was the moment for a joke.

Except, apparently, it was.

"Am I getting another show?" Danny asked, smirking when he saw Derek sitting on a chair, almost exactly like the last time, dictionary not included.

"No," the man growled and Danny would have sworn he had seen some weird red reflects in his eyes.

"O-kay," Stiles intervened. "Let's get this show on the road. Derek is there for the show and tell… and unfortunately, not that kind of show," he continued, aware that Derek's nostril flared in annoyance at the reminded of that time. "But, mostly, because I think that without him here to prove I'm telling the truth, you may decide I need a psych ward. And let's face it, there are enough people already who thinks that."

"Stiles, I already think that," Danny deadpanned, before sitting down on the end of the bed, Derek in his back, facing Stiles.

Stiles couldn't help wincing when he saw that because, since everything had begun, he knew it was best never turn your back on a menace and that was exactly what Danny was doing. Derek was dangerous, even if he wasn't for them, so he should have at least kept an eye on him as long as he didn't know him well enough to tell with certainty he would hurt him. Oh, well, Danny would learn soon enough.

"So, Stiles, I get to know about your little cult," Danny said and, while he could understand the sentiment, he couldn't help feeling Derek was getting really annoyed at him right know and it wasn't good.

"Once you know, you can't go back. And you cannot tell anyone, Danny. That's the most important. Not your parents, or the rest of your family, not any of your friends, no one."

Stiles had to make sure he understood that first. There was no going around it and, if Danny couldn't accept it, then that was it. Because neither Stiles nor Derek wanted to risk having the story getting out but they needn't have worried. Danny immediately acquiesced, stating he had already worked that one out.

"Just tell me," he asked with quiet desperation.

And Stiles did. Once again, just as he did with Lydia, he worked his way through the whole story, Derek in the background proving that werewolves indeed existed and it wasn't just Stiles' idea of joking around. He added everything he knew about the lizard-like creature, even if it wasn't a lot at the moment, and Gerard Argent and then simply quiet down, leaving Danny the time to absorb everything.

Derek was the one to break the silence that permeated the room, surprisingly. Unsurprisingly, it was not to say anything helpful for Danny's understanding but simply to let the boys know he was getting out.

"I'll be back tonight," he said before diving out of the window, leaving both teens to look at his retreating figure.

"Sure, sure, don't bother telling me where you're going. Or, you know, use the front door since my dad's not there."

Stiles didn't know why he still bothered because, apparently, werewolves didn't know how to use front doors, which he had learnt from the few times Isaac had visited. Hell, even Scott entered his room from the window nowadays. Of course, since he had been known to get to Scott's room the exact same way before all that werewolf business began, he didn't really have a leg to stand on.

Danny's mind was reeling with all the new information he had just received, absolutely incapable of believing what he had heard, but unable to deny the truth. Of course, the fact that something as esoteric as werewolves actually explained a lot about his life these last few months really told him all he had to know about this town. And now he found himself involved in all this, because he couldn't not be involved if Jackson was. Terrific.

He really didn't know what to ask first, because Stiles still had a lot of questions to answer. It seemed that Stiles had rubbed on him, though, because the first inquiry to slip through his lips was the most inane one, which had nothing to do with the whole debacle in the first place.

"So, you do realize Derek is attracted to you, right?"


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7/12 (+epilogue)

There was a few second in which Stiles' mind stayed completely blank because there was no possible way that Danny had said what Stiles had just heard. It was simply impossible, mostly because Danny generally knew what he was talking about and wasn't into playing practical jokes, which meant that he wouldn't say anything like if he wasn't certain it was the truth and Stiles would have known if this was a thing.

Or not, because he wasn't exactly the most aware guy when it came to what people felt for him.

"No, he isn't. Come on Danny, this is me we're talking about. I'm just me and Derek is… Derek," Stiles finished lamely.

That wasn't exactly the best worded argument but Stiles understood what he meant to say and, apparently, so did Danny because a smirk graced his feature, along with a fond expression.

"I think you'll find that being Stiles is just enough for Derek. Look, I'm not saying he's madly in love with you or anything like that, but he seems to like you just a bit more than strictly as a friend. Don't tell me you never thought about it?"

"No…"

However he stopped himself because, yes, of course he had thought about it. It was impossible not to, Derek was just too hot for his mind not to have gone in the gutter, especially considering his habit of taking-off his shorts on any given occasion; seriously, Stiles was beginning to think that there was at least one thing that Twilight had gotten right.

"Okay, yes, of course I have. I mean, have you seen the guy?"

Danny's eyebrows shot up. Whatever he had expected when he had asked his question, it hadn't been that particular answer.

"So all these times you've asked me if you were attractive to gay guy?" he asked with a grimace.

"Was a genuine question," Stiles shrugged. "Don't worry, I never had a crush on you, no matter how dreamy you are."

Danny snorted.

"I'm fairly sure I would have known if you had. You haven't exactly been subtle with Lydia."

"Hey! Not taking potshot at me!" Stiles mock-pouted. "But you're serious? You think Derek likes me?"

It came out in a small voice, almost shyly, so unlike Stiles that Danny couldn't help the pang of fondness to take over him. Yes, Stiles was usually extremely annoying when he didn't stop talking for two seconds, but Danny knew that there were a lot of insecurities under all that bluster, along with the shitty hand that life had dealt him.

"Yes, Stiles. I think you have a shot. Now why don't you tell me what I can do to help?"

Stiles was okay with the change of conversation, mostly because he knew he would need to deal with the revelation of Derek's feeling towards him alone and think about whether or not he wanted to try. Well, no, actually, he had to think about whether or not he wanted to take the risk of destroying their fragile friendship because there was no way he didn't want to be with Derek if that was a possibility. He had never really let himself think about it seriously. Fantasy in the death of the night, yes, actual possibility of being together, no; mostly because he had learnt his lesson with Lydia.

And he really did need all the information he could find on Gerard Argent as soon as possible.

"Okay, don't freak but I need a police record."

"Are you insane?" Danny cut before he had even time to finish his sentence. "Hacking into the phone operator computer is one thing, but the police?"

"I know," Stiles sighed and he really did.

He didn't want to get Danny in trouble, it was exceedingly important and there was no one else he could go to, unless he wanted to alert his dad that something was wrong. Then his dad would make it an actual investigation but Stiles still wouldn't know anything because the man wouldn't let Stiles in on his findings and Stiles got that, because it was kind of in his job description not to talk about a current investigation, but it did annoy him to no end.

"But it's really important. I need to know all the cops have on Gerard Argent."

"So I'm supposed to access the confidential police record of our new principal?"

"Hum… Yes," Stiles stammered.

"It could help Jackson?" Danny still asked.

"Yes, it would help everyone in the pack, including Jackson. Gerard knows he's a werewolf, so…"

So he's in danger as long as Gerard is there to sniff around them was what Stiles didn't say but they both heard anyway. Okay, Danny sighed to himself, sliding his laptop out of his bag and setting himself to work. Stiles sighed in relief and thanked Danny profusely. The young hacker just told him to shut up because he really couldn't mess this one up; he couldn't afford to get caught breaking into the police network.

It took Danny a while and, the more minutes went by, the more Stiles got twitchy, his ADHD not helping him keep calm as he had nothing to do. Eventually, Danny sent Stiles out of the room, ignoring Stiles' protest that it was his own room, and Stiles stomped out, going to the kitchen and deciding that the better use of his time would be to cook something for when his dad came back from work. It would also have the merit of calming him down.

He quickly lost himself in his cooking and therefore almost jumped a mile up when he heard Danny call from upstairs. He barely took the time to make sure nothing was going to burn before he was running and up and going straight to the laptop.

"There really isn't anything worth mentioning in the files, except a few speed tickets."

"Damn, I should have known," Stiles sighed, a bit disappointed but not overly surprised. "He would have the resource to clean it up."

"Not so fast, Stiles," Danny said with a grin. "I said there wasn't anything in the file but… the file in itself is interesting. Something has been erased."

Stiles' mouth opened and closed again without a word getting out. Danny was right, this was interesting. Very interesting.

"When?"

"I can't tell you when it was erased but, considering the place where the glitch is, something happened around 1990-1991. It's too bad the person who erased it didn't do his work right, isn't it?"

Stiles let out a whoop of joy because that was great. They may soon have something to hold against Gerard, something that wasn't just a feeling, and the moment they knew about it they would know more about what they are up against.

"That's great."

"Well, no really. Because you know there is something but you can't know what. I can't get these information back, no matter what. It's gone from the server."

"Nope, you can't. But there is still a chance. Look, he may have had the information erased from the electronic file but that doesn't mean he thought about destroying the paper trail left. And guess where Argent lived around that time?"

Danny's jaw dropped.

"You're serious? He lived in Beacon Hills?"

Stiles nodded enthusiastically. Of course, now he would have to find a way to break into the station but that was something he would have time to think about and he would probably ask Lydia if she had any idea. He knew exactly where the documents would be, if it hadn't actually been destroyed, but to access it without being seen, that would take some work. Still, it was feasible.

"Thanks, Danny. You don't know how much that helps."

"Well, just keep me in the loop, okay?"

"Of course. You'll think about becoming pack, right? I mean, not a wolf, but a human pack member, like Allison, Lydia and I?"

Danny was silent for a moment but, eventually, he still nodded because, yes, he would think about it. It was a lot to absorb in very little time and he would have to take a few days before he could give a thought-out answer but he really would approach this with an open-mind and get back to Derek once he had taken his decision.

"Sure, but anyway, even if I don't… that doesn't mean I won't help anymore."

Stiles thanked his friend once again, musing that there was a damn good reason everyone always loved Danny, even the biggest douchebag of the school and no, he didn't have anyone specific in mind, absolutely not. He asked Danny if he wanted to stay for dinner because, really, after everything he had dropped on the poor boy, the least he could do was offer some sustenance but Danny politely declined because he wanted to be alone for a little while, to straighten his mind.

Stiles just nodded, understanding, and saw Danny out, a bit worried he would be too off his game to be able to drive safely but he didn't voice his concerns. Danny was a big boy and he was certain he wouldn't have taken the wheel if he wasn't sure he could drive without being a danger to himself or anyone else.

Stiles finished preparing dinner and ate his part after putting a filled plate in the microwave for his father to find after his shift was over, with a note on the kitchen counter, where he knew the Sheriff would find. He then went back to his room and dropped on his bed, waiting for Derek to come back and try to come up with a plan for his break-in into the station.

* * *

Stiles was fidgety as he walked down the corridors of the school. Strangely enough, at the moment, his thoughts were more focused on Derek and what he was going to do about his attraction to the guy than the situation with either the creatures or Gerard Argent. He couldn't stop thinking about it and was cursing Danny for ever saying anything about it. Because, yes, he may have been happy about the fact that maybe, just maybe, they could get together at some point in time but it really would have been better if the revelation had come to a later date.

Like, for example, when there wasn't a murderous beast on the loose and a psychopath hell-bent on killing werewolves.

"Stiles! He heard from behind him and he stopped mid-step to wait for Allison who was running in his direction.

She looked exhausted and Stiles felt his anxiety skyrocket. It seemed as if she hadn't been sleeping well – or at all really – and the fact that she shared a house with Gerard wasn't something he could forget easily. Adding the two made for a bad picture. Still, he was fairly certain the man wouldn't try anything at home, where Allison was protected by both her parents.

"You okay?" he still asked.

She crinkled her nose in distaste, thinking about the picture she must have made with bags under her eyes.

"Just tired. Things are tense at home. Dad is mad at mom for inviting Gerard without telling him about it first. I mean, he didn't say anything where I could hear but when they are in the same room, it's difficult to ignore. Plus, he's been acting weird. It's like he's stalking me through the house."

"Gerard?" Stiles squeaked, revising his opinion and wondering if they should do something to get Allison out of her house.

"No, dad! He told me he didn't want me alone with Gerard at any time, and I was all for it, but I think he's taking things a bit too far…"

Stiles opened his mouth to ask more question about the situation when his best friend came barreling. Of course, Scott being Scott just latched onto Allison, with a 'hello' to Stiles and she seemed to forget all about the conversation they were having. That just figured.

It seemed he wasn't the only one who had problem staying focused. Of course, the two lovebirds were soon in their own little world and Stiles walking beside them. He just didn't feel like a third wheel, not at all…. Note the sarcasm.

Of course, soon after that, classes began and he couldn't have talked to them anymore anyway. He concentrated on his lessons the best he could and tried to attract Lydia's attention. It wasn't as if anyone would find that attitude particularly strange. After all, everyone knew about his crush on her, they would simply think he still hadn't gotten over it.

The young strawberry-blonde seemed to notice, which was more than could have been said for when it had actually been his crush, and she motioned that she would wait for him at lunch, in the cafeteria. Since it was pack business anyway, at least as much as it could be, it didn't matter if they talked in front of the others.

When it was time to eat, they all reunited. Allison, Scott, Lydia, Jackson, Stiles and Isaac, who had decided he preferred Gerard to know about him than have to spend all his time at school alone, were all gathered together.

"Danny still wants to think for a while," Jackson said as he sat down, anticipating the question from the pack, who all knew the young man had been told. "He prefers to stay out of our business for the moment, unless we need him."

The way he said it showed that he still wasn't a hundred percent okay with Danny being in the know, but they could all see that it was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulder now that he didn't have to lie to his best friend anymore.

The others nodded, showing their comprehension for the young man's situation, and Lydia turned to Stiles.

"What new do you have?" she asked.

"Okay, Allison and I talked and guessed Gerard must have stayed in Beacon Hills before. I snooped around in the library. It was in 1990, when your dad was in high school," he added for the girl in question. "He also became the principal back then, half-way though the school year. That's why it was so easy for him this time around."

"So, why was he here?" Scott asked. "I mean, we know why he came here this year, with Allison's mom calling him, but back then, there must have been a reason?"

Stiles shrugged.

"Maybe it was to keep an eye on the Hale pack. Who knows as far as we know, the hunters may have a system, to check up from time to time on well-known pack territories, even when there's nothing going on."

Allison nodded. Maybe that was the case. She didn't think that anything about her family's habits could surprise her anymore.

"I had Danny check out his police record," he also told them. "And that's where it gets sketchy because something has been erased from it and, from the look of it, it's something that should have happened the year he was in Beacon Hills."

All of them were more attentive now.

"Is there a way to recover the information?" Isaac, who had been silent up to now, asked, not very comfortable knowing the man should have had a record, something that would have probably prevented him from getting a job in a school environment.

"Not electronically. Danny can't go anything. But there may be a way and that's where you come in," Stiles said, turning to Lydia.

"What do you need me to do?" the girl questioned, not even bothering to wonder if it was something legal or not.

"We're going to break into the Sheriff station's archive," Stiles told her bluntly, knowing she would prefer a direct approach. "There is a chance no one thought to dispose of the paper trail so there should be some written evidence someone, even if Gerard covered his trace."

"Why her?" both Scott and Jackson asked in tandem, the latter not very happy with his girlfriend – or ex-girlfriend, Stiles was a bit unclear on that particular issue at the moment – being part of the plan and the former put out he hadn't been asked instead.

"One, I need a human. Sorry guys, but I don't want to risk anyone shifting because of an adrenaline rush if something goes wrong. It would be a bit difficult to explain that in the middle of the station. and I can't ask Allison, because we cannot risk Gerard finding out we're up to something, so she can't be involved at all, she has to keep on going through the night perfectly normally, without a change in her routine, and it would be better if she didn't have to lie about her whereabouts on the off chance Gerard figured something out," Stiles said. "I know exactly where the documents are kept so I can get them myself, I just need you to distract the receptionist so I can get in without being seen."

Lydia nodded, looking perfectly at easy with the plan in a fashion that Stiles envied. He was more than aware of all the way it could go wrong and he knew he would be in big trouble if he was found out by his dad. And if someone other than his dad found out, then it was the Sheriff himself that could be held responsible because it just didn't look good to have the Sheriff's son breaking the law.

"Okay, from what I know, most of the force will be patrolling the streets, mostly on the crime scenes and the surrounding part. There should be only one person at the station, mostly to be able to take calls and be there should someone want to file a complaint or something. It shouldn't be too difficult for me to sneak in and out."

"Is your dad home?" Lydia asked.

Stiles shook his head.

"He will be in the streets, with his men, I guess we just have to pray not to meet him. I'll get you at nine, late enough for the officers to be out of the station, but early enough we won't attract to much attention by being out.

Lydia nodded.

"I'll tell my mom I'm going to a friend for the night, since we don't know how long it will take. I can crash at your house, Jackson?"

The boy perked up at that. Considering his surprise, Stiles guessed that he and Lydia were still on the out and it was her way of saying maybe they should try again. Stiles found himself hoping it was the case because, now that he had actually more or less moved on and switched interest towards somebody else, he just wanted Lydia to be happy and she had admitted herself that it would take Jackson for that to happen.

"Of course. You bring her to my house after your little expedition, you hear me Stilinski," Jackson growled.

"Geez, no need to get cranky. Of course, I'll bring her. I'm a gentleman, after all. I wouldn't leave a lady out alone in the dark."

Scott snorted at that and Allison elbowed him in the ribs.

"That's not nice," she gently berated him. "And we're very glad Stiles is a gentleman, aren't we Lydia?"

The other girl smiled her answer and the rest of the lunch hour was spent on lighter topics until Isaac's eyes seemed to widen and his fear became almost palpable.

All of them turned at once in the direction he was looking at and saw Gerard coming their way. The teens all tried to stay natural, but Stiles was fairly sure they looked as if they were imitating statues rather than seem neutral. Still, Gerard, in reminiscence of the day Lydia and Stiles met him, didn't comment on it, choosing to address his granddaughter instead.

"Hello Allison," he said nice and how could something as simple as that actually appear threatening, Stiles didn't know.

"Hi, Granddad!" she said perkily and Stiles almost applauded at her performance.

"I'm not going to embarrass you too much by letting all your little schoolmates see you talking to the principal, but I wanted to tell your boyfriend – Scott is it? – that he's invited for dinner tonight. You will be able to make it, won't you? I just want to get to know the boy my granddaughter is so in love with, I'm sure you can understand."

"Of – of course, Sir," Scott answered because he may not have been the brightest but he did have some self-preservation instinct and he knew it wasn't actually a question. "I'll tell my mom. It would be great."

"Good. Good afternoon, you people," he wished them before slinking away and they released their collective breath.

"Scott," Stiles said softly.

"Yeah?"

"Be very, very careful."

* * *

Stiles pulled out in Lydia's driveway at exactly nine o'clock. He, after all, knew better than incur the young woman's wrath by being late at their appointment, as she wasn't the most accepting of any kind of excuses. It was what made her Lydia and Stiles wouldn't change her for the world, but she could be scary and he didn't want to be at the receiving end of a tongue-lashing.

They hashed out their plan as their drove towards the station on the almost deserted roads. With all the troubles the town was having at the moment, it seemed that most people preferred to stay home. Stiles couldn't exactly blame them. He would have preferred to stay home and not have to worry about getting attacked by a giant lizard but, unfortunately, he didn't have that kind of luxury.

Eventually, they parked the jeep a block away from the station. Stiles' vehicle was too well-known by anyone who worked there to risk stationing right in front of the building. As they approached, Stiles made sure to stay hidden from the view of anyone who still may have been inside while Lydia took a deep breath, entering the hall and immediately attracting the attention of the young officer that was the vigil that night.

As Lydia began to talk, batting her eyelashes at him spinning a story about how she had nearly been attacked by the beast everyone was talking about, Stiles tiptoed inside to find the archive room and, making sure to stay away from the camera, he picked the lock to enter. Now, he just had to hope that his dad would never see what kind of skills he had picked up otherwise he would be grounded 'till the end of time. Or, at least, until graduation day.

Once inside, he turned on his light torch and looked quickly through the files. Thank god, his dad had talked at length to him about how the files were organized, otherwise it would have taken him all night. He found the right date and then skimmed through the name until he found a thin folder labeled Gerard Argent. He shoved it quickly into his bad and, making sure nothing had been notably disturbed, he left the room and closed the door behind him. With a bit of luck, the next person who opened it would think that someone had just forgotten to lock it up.

As she was finishing with her false statement, Lydia saw Stiles slip out of the station and knew she had finished with her performance. She made sure to profusely thank the young man for his attention, there was no need to be rude and attract unwanted attention, and left. They walked in silence until they were inside the jeep and, not able to contain his curiosity, Stiles took the folder out and opened it.

It really shouldn't have surprised him. After all, that document only served to prove his suspicions correct, but that didn't mean he had to like it and, glancing over to Lydia, who was reading from behind his shoulder, Stiles could see she was livid.

"We can't tell Allison," the girl stated and Stiles could see it cost her to take that decision.

She would have hated to be kept in the dark, and she would normally have been the last one to suggest hiding something from her friend but, in this particular instance, there was no other solution. They just couldn't tell the young huntress what they had found.

"No, we can't," Stiles agreed. "I was hoping I was wrong."

Lydia snorted.

"The man is a monster. Why would he have been any different with his own children? It's hardly as if they would go complain to someone. Look at Isaac, he's still protecting his own father, even after everything."

Stiles nodded.

"I wonder how he managed to get the Social Services to back off after a formal complaint was made, though."

"He probably has a lot of strings he can pull. What do we tell the others?"

Because they would ask questions about the result of their expedition and that was a secret they needed to keep, at least as long as they knew Allison was safe. However, as long as Chris was there, there was no way he would let Allison get hurt by Gerard so, for now, it would stay their secret.

"A complaint was made to the Social Services," Stiles began, wanting to stay as close to the true as possible. "Because it was reported by a third party that he had a lot if weapons that his children could access. It was dismissed as it was proven they were secured."

"He may have just erased it because he didn't want to advertise his business in arms to anyone who may need to consult his file," Lydia finished. "Good, now get me to Jackson and make sure no one find that file."

Stiles didn't have to be told twice. He wanted to get home before he was caught by his dad.


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8/12 (epilogue)

Stiles and Lydia kept to their words and didn't breathe a word of what they had found out at the station. Mostly they got away by telling Derek it had nothing to do with hunters' stuff and it was useless information for their endeavor. He didn't seem very please not to be let on the secret, but a look at both their face told him it was better not to insist.

Of course, that particular dead end meant that they now had absolutely nothing to go on with and could only wait for the other shoe to drop. It wasn't something they relished but they didn't really have a choice. For now, Gerard had done nothing, except creep the fuck out of Scott during that family dinner, with the help of Victoria, who wasn't particularly please to see her daughter still dating a werewolf. There was nothing she could do about it, though, except formulate some veiled threat that the rest of the pack was pretty sure she wouldn't act on, not as long as Scott didn't reveal himself to be a menace.

They decided to let the Gerard thing drop for the moment, with just the promise to keep an eye on him, and concentrated all their efforts on their endeavor to try and figure out the mystery of the lizard. Even Deaton hadn't been able to help them much, as he had apparently never heard of anything like that before and that kind of freaked Stiles out just a little bit more.

Things stayed the same for a little while more but then the first casualty happened. Up to now, people had been attacked, paralyzed, terrified, but there had been no death. However, as of the day before, there had finally been a victim who succumbed to his injuries.

Stiles had been the first one to know because he had been there, at home, when his dad had received the phone call. It wasn't as if the Sheriff had told him what was being said, but he had seen the look on his face as his interlocutor summarized the situation and that was all Stiles had needed. He still confirmed it and, well, the man knew the news would be out by the next morning so he had said yes, the beast had made a victim.

The moment his dad left, he had mass texted the rest of the pack to tell them. Most of them answered immediately and asked to come over but Derek vetoed it. The last thing they needed was to get out in the streets when the police were all looking around.

"It's going to go from bad to worse, isn't it?" Stiles asked Derek as there was no way he could sleep right now.

The Alpha still resided in his room most of the time but, thankfully, the crew had advanced a lot on the house and would probably be finished by the end of the week. Stiles had been surprised by the rapidity of their work but, apparently, Derek had used his money to make sure they worked twice as quickly as usual, with a bigger group of people. He really didn't like not being able to meet in his house.

"Probably, especially if the beast has gotten a taste for the kill. That's why I was thankful there hadn't been a fatality up to now."

Stiles liked how much Derek was sharing now. Of course, for anyone else, it wouldn't seem like a lot but, a few months ago, it would have taken quite a lot to get Derek to say this much, a bit like pulling teeth. Now, though, he seemed to understand they needed all the information they could have and Derek's own opinion was part of what mattered in the scenario.

"Derek…," Stiles began, hesitating. "Do you think Gerard is going to call for back-up now that someone has died?"

It was something that bothered him because, as long as they weren't a hundred percent sure Gerard live by the same code his son did, they didn't know what kind of hunters would work with him and bringing more of them in Beacon Hills, it could transform in a mass hunting of the pack members.

Derek looked at Stiles from where he was sitting, just beside him, on the bed. At the beginning, it had been strange to Stiles but he had since then understood that it came from being in the same pack. The closeness, the need to touch, it was all part of being a family of sort and now he tended to be more weirded out if Derek chose to put more distance than strictly necessary between them

"I hope not," Derek said. "Of course, if he doesn't, it also means he had something in mind and can't afford an audience for it."

"Basically," Stiles said, mouth going dry. "It's bad for us if he does, but it's also bad if he doesn't. Except that, if he does, at least we will know from where the danger come, instead of being totally in the dark on his plan."

Stiles was afraid, genuinely afraid, for the very first time in a while. Having a threat they couldn't deal with was bad enough, but having a threat they didn't know anything about was ever worse and dealing with a hunter… it wasn't like dealing with just another beast. They wouldn't be able to kill him to dispose of him, they would have to maneuver around him and try to get him to leave town and not to come back by any other mean. Quite frankly, it was easier said than done.

Derek seemed to sense his shifting mood as he threw a heavy arm around Stiles' slim shoulders and brought him against him in an awkward side-hug. Stiles let himself go against him and mused that he didn't use to feel safe with Derek but now, being with him almost gave him the same sense of security than being in his father's arm.

"I won't let him hurt my pack," Derek said in a gruff voice and Stiles knew he meant it, that he wouldn't let anyone hurt any of them, wolf or human, and he loved him just a little bit for more it.

"Thanks," Stiles murmured and, eventually, he let sleep take him as he felt warm and safe and he was fairly sure that he would die before he admitted it out loud, but he had needed a good cuddling because he had missed this, since his mom died.

* * *

"We can't go on like this," Stiles interjected at school as the pack was once again meeting over their lunch. "We need to find something."

"How? You've been spending most of your time at the library or on the net, and so has Lydia," Scott answered. "And Deaton has been looking around his own stuff and he still hasn't found anything useful."

All of them knew exactly where they should be looking but none of them want to say it out loud, because it was way too risky. Still, there was no more choice now that there had been a fatality.

"We need to look in your family volumes, Allison," Lydia said, being the first one to find the courage to say it.

"Are you mad?" Isaac questioned and they knew it was a seriously bad idea when it was Isaac who objected.

Being a wolf may have made him stronger, and gave him back some self-esteem, but the habits ingrained to him by his father's violence were still holding on and, even if they hadn't seen a single bruise on him and he had assured him the other than the man hadn't touched him since his transformation, he still had a problem contradicting other and overcoming his shyness, as if he was waiting to be struck for daring to speak up.

"Yes, it's mad but we need to do it," Stiles supported Lydia. "We won't find information anywhere else. It's our best bet."

Jackson's eyes almost flashed but he was able to control himself, with great difficulty.

"And I suppose it should be you and Lydia again?" he said, almost growling menacingly.

Lydia turned a glare on him, apparently not liking the possessiveness even if she was on the way of forgiving everything he had done and take him back. She was still her own person and capable of taking her own decision.

"Yes, Jackson, it will be me and Stiles we actually know the layout of the house."

"Then shouldn't it be Allison," Scott pointed out helpfully.

Stiles shook his head.

"No," he said determinedly. "Look, we can only do that while Gerard is sure to be out, that means during school hours. It would be better if Allison stayed for all her classes, though. The teachers will report us missing the lessons but only at the end of the day. If it's his own granddaughter, they may decide to tell him before that and he would know something's up and demands an explanation."

Both Scott and Jackson deflated at that because they knew Stiles was right, even if that didn't mean they had to like it.

"Tomorrow," Allison said suddenly. "My mom won't be there, she's getting out of town for a few days. She leaves tonight. I'll give you a key. I don't know if my dad will be here, but he won't be a problem, even if he is."

"You sure?" Isaac asked, a bit tentatively.

Allison nodded.

"Yes, I'm sure. Look, the thing is Gerard doesn't seem to care about the beast. I don't know why but he's not worried at all, he isn't researching it or anything. It's as if he already knows what it is and doesn't give a damn. My dad doesn't like that and my mom is becoming wary about it too. I mean, that was the whole reason she called him here in the first place.

Stiles frowned.

"He doesn't care about it? He's a hunter!" he exclaimed.

"Exactly," Allison said, enforcing her point. "There is something wrong here."

"And we will probably find the answer at your place because if he doesn't care, it means he knows and if he knows," Stiles began.

"He must have found the answer in his stuff," Lydia finished for him and they exchanged a loaded look.

"Tomorrow it is," Stiles stated. "We will go to all of our classes in the morning, act as if everything is normal, and have lunch. We leave before the first period of the afternoon."

All of them acquiesced, with the added bonus that, should they realize Gerard is taking notice of their absence, they would do whatever they could to distract him and send them a text if they saw him leave the campus. Isaac even said he would stay out of class but in plain view of the entrance of the school to monitor who was leaving. He would, after all, be the less likely to get into trouble with parental figures.

* * *

Stiles was the one to break the new to Derek and he really didn't seem happy about it but, when Stiles asked him if he could come up with a better plan, he had nothing to offer and therefore, couldn't exactly stop them to do what they needed to do.

As long as they were careful enough not to get caught by Gerard, they wouldn't be any trouble at all. And even if Gerard did notice after the fact, they wouldn't let any evidence. With Allison's key, there wouldn't be any breaking and entering and it's hardly as if Allison couldn't lie and say she had touched something. They would prefer if that didn't happen but they also had this possibility should anything go wrong.

Lunch was a tense affair that day, even if they tried their best not to let it show. Thankfully, their awkward attempt at chitchat was broken when Danny decided to ask if he could join them, tray in hand.

"Danny! Of course you can. Sit, sit…. So what brings you to our neck of the wood," Stiles asked, babbling away his nerves on a new victim. "Pun not intended," he added as an after-thought, realizing what he had done there.

"I want in," he said simply and no one had to ask what he meant because, really, it was that obvious.

Genuine smiles illuminated faces all around for the very first time that day because it was the best new they had had in quite some time. It felt good to have something going the right way for once and adding to the pack was something they all felt was a good thing.

"Good to have you, man," Jackson said with a pat on Danny's back, the most gracious he had been in quite a while but, then again, Danny had always had a calming effect on him, even before the werewolf thing.

"Anything new?" he asked awkwardly, not sure how to begin and if there had been a lot of progress since the talk he had with Stiles a while ago.

"Lydia and I are breaking in at the Argent today," Stiles said around a mouthful, as if it was the most banal thing to say, and Danny raised an eyebrow.

"Anything to do with Argent's police record?" he asked because that was the only reason he could think of.

"No," Lydia denied. "We found what had been erased. It didn't have anything to do with hunting. We need to get into their books but we need to do it when no one's home. Which is why we're going after lunch."

"Because of the guy in the park?" Danny asked because that was the reason he, himself, had finally taken his decision; the fact that someone had died and he could be in on the search for the murderer, knowing everything about what was going on had not been lost on him.

"Yeah," Scott answered. "We have to find what's going on before it gets too bad."

"It's already too bad," Jackson snorted. "Someone died. I don't see how it could be worse."

"Other people could die too," Scott argued. "We have to stop it before it comes to that."

"We should have been able to stop it before anyone died but no one know anything, not even our esteemed Alpha," Jackson answered, seeming to get more and more pissed off for no reason at all and Danny's eyes widened, as did Isaac and Stiles'.

Lydia, seeing trouble coming, elbowed Jackson to make him aware he was losing control and Allison took Scott's hand in hers to stop him from making anymore comment. They really couldn't risk a shift in the middle of school, especially not on the very day they had something planned that needed for them to be as invisible as possible.

Unfortunately, they didn't really have time to calm the situation down anymore than that because people were beginning to get up and Stiles chanced a look at the clock.

"Shit," he said, biting his lips. "It's time."

Lydia nodded when he looked at her and they all got up, Allison slipping her keys in Lydia's hand and going her own way while Lydia and Stiles tried to stay as inconspicuous as possible as they left the school in the middle of the rush.

The same way they did at the police station, they stopped Stiles' jeep a block away from the Argent's house. They didn't think anyone would contact the police or anything, but it was better safe than sorry and the teens could make their escape more easily on foot than in a keep, without being seen.

They walked normally up to the front door, in case anyone decided to look. They wouldn't see anything wrong with the pictures, just two teenagers – okay, so maybe they should have been in school but it's not that weird for them to play hooky – coming to their friend's house. They rang the bell, mostly because if Allison was wrong and one of her parents was inside, it would be better that way. They would have problem explaining why they were letting themselves in the house.

Nobody answered though, and Lydia used the key her friend had given her. They made sure to lock the door behind them and tiptoed through the house, straight to the room at the back, where all the more interesting books were. Of course, now that they were there, they had no idea where to begin and they didn't have all that much time.

Both of them began to read the title and just skim through anything that seemed promising. They were going fast but they had no other choice. They couldn't afford to waste time and they didn't know when they would be able to do it again.

They were both so completely taken by their research that they hadn't heard the front door opening and someone walking in. They didn't notice anyone sneaking up on them and arriving just behind them.

"What the hell are the two of you doing?"

Lydia whirled around and Stiles dropped the book he had been holding, both their heart racing at the sudden intrusion.

"Chris!" Stiles exclaimed, breathless, and wincing as he saw the gun in the hunter's hand. "God, you scared us."

"Good," the man said, not feeling very charitable to the two teenagers he had found wondering in his house, but he still put his gun back to his waistband, where it belonged. "I thought someone had broken in," he said to explain the weapon.

"Well," Stiles said, biting his lips, because it was kind of the case after all. "Doesn't really count as breaking in if Allison gave us the key?"

"Look, Mister Argent," Lydia cut because she knew Stiles' tendencies to babble in those kinds of situations. "We need to know what that thing attacking people is and Allison told her she's certain her grandfather know. If he knows, then the answer in somewhere in here, isn't it?"

Chris studied them both for a moment and then shook his head.

"You're right, my father knows exactly what's going on even if he's not saying. But you won't find the answer in these books. Come with me," he said and left the room, expecting them to follow him without question.

Stiles and Lydia exchanged a look and quickly trotted after him, curious as to where he would lead them.

Apparently, he chose to show them in his own bedroom and the teens got extremely inquisitive to what was going on. They knew that most of the stuff he wanted to keep secret would be in the study so they wondered why come here. As if he had heard the unasked question, Chris explained himself.

"My father has access to the study and goes there quite frequently. He won't, on the other hand, come in here looking for anything because he has no reason to suspect I'm hiding anything from him. No, I do hope it will go on that way."

Both teens nodded because they had absolutely no intention to go babbling to Gerard and they wouldn't do what to Chris, not when the man was helping them, almost betraying his own family – or at least part of his family.

Chris took a USB stick from a drawer and gave it to Stiles.

"There is a book in our family, one that has been there for generation. It's called the bestiary. Most hunters family have one and it's basically a collection of every supernatural creatures known, with as much information as anyone else has on them. I can't give you the book, mostly because Gerard would notice immediately if it went missing, but there is a copy, taken from his computer because my father doesn't go anywhere without his laptop and he likes the easy access."

Lydia frowned.

"If you have this, why haven't you found the creature yet?" she demanded.

Stiles could have sworn Chris looked a bit sheepish as he answered.

"It's in old Latin. I've been trying to translate it but… it's slow work and I'm not sure where to begin," he admitted and Stiles snorted.

"Lucky us, we have the one person in Beacon Hills that actually speaks archaic Latin fluently," he said, indicating Lydia.

Chris looked at the girl, impressed. She didn't even pretend to be bothered by the attention but instead preened because, yes, she knew it was an impressive feat and she was glad she was able to impress people by something else than her look, even though she tried not to let too many people know about it at school.

"Keep me informed," Chris said as he saw them out of the house, not wanting them to stay too long on the off-chance his father would show up before the end of the school day. "And be careful."

They both thanked him and left, the stick safe in Stiles' jeans pocket. He would give it straight to Lydia as soon as they were secure, in Stiles' room. She would go and work on it immediately and promised not to let herself be distracted by anything else until she had the answer they were looking for.

Unfortunately, having the bestiary at their disposition was not as much a step up as they thought it would be, as Stiles learnt the next time he found himself meeting Chris at the gun range. The boy would have thought the meeting a coincidence, if Chris had actually set a target but he didn't took his gun off his holster so he had an inkling that it was actually premeditated on the older man's part, because he hadn't wanted to go through Allison.

"It seems that my father is more paranoiac that I thought," he began the conversation and Stiles felt dread coil in his gut. "Apparently he knew I had made a copy of the bestiary and he knows it's not in the house anymore."

Stiles' jaw dropped.

"What? He was what… rummaging through your bedroom's drawers?" Stiles asked, scandalized.

Chris looked as disturbed as he felt.

"Apparently," he still said, looking uneasy and Stiles could understand.

Seriously, what kind of man was Gerard to do something like that? Alright, so he wasn't wrong about Chris hiding something from him but still, that didn't mean he had a right to do something like that.

"Stiles, you really need to be careful," Chris continued. "He knows I've been helping you, the pack, and… he's not very happy about it."

Stiles watched as the man was rubbing nervously his arms and the slight movement displaced his shirt's sleeve just enough to reveal a bruise and Stiles' breath caught even if he tried not to let it show. He adverted his eyes quickly and looked back at Chris' face to hear the rest of the warning.

"He may decide to take it out on the pack."

Yes, why not take it out of them. It's not as if he seemed to have a problem taking it out on his own son, even if it seemed odd for the old man to show his hand like this. Or was he so sure Chris would keep his mouth shut that he didn't care? Stiles' jaw was clenched as he tried to look as if nothing was wrong.

"And what about you?" Stiles still asked, hoping for… he didn't even know because even if Chris admitted he was in danger in the house, what could be done?

"I'll be fine. I can handle Gerard. Don't worry about it."

Still tactfully didn't mention anything about the bruises and just thanked him for the warning, assuring Chris he would pass in on to the others. He watched as the man left and he was left alone in the shooting range, wishing, not for the first time, the paper target he was shooting at was the eldest Argent.

He continued contemplating what he had learnt and what kind of options he had for a few hours and took a decision. He wasn't sure it was the right one but it may help somehow, maybe the pack, maybe Chris, he wasn't certain but he couldn't do nothing.

"Dad?" he asked hesitantly that night, over their dinner.

The man in question looked at his son with concern shining in his eyes and Stiles knew he must have been thinking the worse because Stiles wasn't usually hesitant about anything, less of all with him.

"What's wrong, son?"

"Could you keep an eye on Gerard Argent, discreetly you know?"

The Sheriff blinked before turning suspicious instantly.

"Any particular reason you want your new principal under surveillance?"

"Not surveillance!" Stiles interrupted before continuing more quietly. "I think he's violent. You know, not at school or anything but at home."

"Allison?" the Sheriff asked immediately and Stiles thought his dad looked ready to go there with handcuff and shotgun but, unfortunately, it wasn't the way to deal with the man.

Stiles shook his head, biting his lips, wondering once again if he was doing the right thing.

"Chris Argent?" his dad asked again, more gently this time.

"I think so…. I… look, I saw him at the gun range and he has bruises and, yes, I know, it could be something else but Allison says he's been weird ever since Gerard has gotten here, he doesn't let her stay alone with him, not even at home. That's not really normal, you know?"

The Sheriff sighed and sat back, frowning. It wasn't as if he didn't believe Stiles, but it wasn't that easy. If there had been a minor involved, it would be very different, no one would blame him for acting on suspicion alone, but Chris Argent was an adult and unless he came out and accused his father or assault and battery, it was going to be difficult to do anything. And that was only if something had really happened and not just Stiles' imagination going into overdrive.

"Look, I know you can't do anything, legally, but maybe just keep an eye out, see if he doesn't do anything odd or suspicious. It's just… Allison is staying in the same house as him and he really creeps her out."

The Sheriff nodded his understanding. He, quite honestly, didn't like the situation anymore than his son. Yes, he would make sure there was nothing going on there and he would be ready to act on the slightest misdemeanor on Gerard Argent's part, or anything else that could implicate him.

"Okay, I will keep an eye on thing but you know the investigation I'm working on is what come first. I can't be completely on this."

Stiles nodded readily.

"I know, dad. Thanks for doing this, already."

"You're welcome, Son. I'm glad you know you can come to me for things like that," she Sheriff said, taking his son in a one-armed hug and Stiles ducked his head, hiding what his dad would have thought a blush but was actually shame because he didn't deserve this,

He wasn't telling his dad anything relevant. He wasn't putting all his trust in him and that just made him feel worse.


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9/12(+epilogue)

One would have thought they had more than enough problems for the moment with going around adding some to the mix if it could be helped but, apparently, Derek didn't agree on this because the moment they all discovered the newly-renovated Hale house, he told everyone he was going to bite Erica and Boyd, who had both been thoroughly briefed on what it meant to become a werewolf and what kind of situation they would be thrown it. They had both given a positive answer and were now waiting for Derek to find the ideal moment.

Ideal moment which, apparently, was when they were under close observation by a psychopath hunter and when a beast roamed through the town attacking, and now having escalated to killing, people. Go figure. Of course, the rest of the pack wasn't exactly happy with the decision.

"Are you insane?" Stiles exclaimed.

"You can't turn them now," Scott added. "Gerard Argent will notice immediately. He's watching us constantly."

"McCall is right," Jackson said, as if it pained him to say so. "He's been ever worse since we got the bestiary."

Lydia was, in fact, not at the meeting because she was presently working on the old text. She had done nothing else since they got it, except go to school. Even with her impressive knowledge of the language, it was complicated and there was a lot of information she had to weed through, so Derek had made an exception, telling her she didn't have to attend any pack meeting until she had found what she was looking for, unless it was absolutely necessary and, in that case, he would tell her himself.

"I'm not asking permission. I'm telling. We need a larger pack if we want to be able to fight when the time come. Erica and Boyd are going to join us tomorrow. I'm telling you as a head up but you don't have a say in it."

None of them were happy, mostly because it was a step back. Derek had been doing so well up to now, by sharing information and asking for the pack's opinion but now that they all were against his decision of giving someone the bite, it was his way or the highway. Of course, it wasn't as if they had any mean to stop him from doing exactly what he wanted.

"Great, just great. Gerard is going to murder us," Stiles muttered, standing up because he knew he was going to end up saying something that would actually make Derek rip his throat out if he stayed. "Well, I'm out. I'm going home."

"The pack meeting is not over," Derek growled menacingly.

"Oh yes, it is. Because I'm not going to stay here and listen to you going on about Erica and Boyd and whatever is going on there because I'm going to end up pulling my hair out if I do because it's such a bad idea it makes Scott's usual half-assed plan looks great," he ranted, ignoring Scott's indignant 'hey' and Allison's reassurance to her boyfriend she loved him even though Stiles was kind of right about that. "But I know I won't be able to make you change your mind so I'm not even going to waste my time trying. But you better make sure they don't go on a power trip and make themselves noticed because the slightest different in their behavior and Gerard will know."

After that, he just left and Derek was so stunned that Stiles had dared to talk to him like that that he was left speechless and slightly hurt. He had known his decision was not going to be popular but he had thought that Stiles, at least, would have seen his point. A glance at the others told him they all agreed with the younger man but he knew he was right to go throw with his plan to make the pack stronger.

"Meeting's over," Derek said harshly, knowing there was no use trying to have the meeting now because any hope of productive conversation was gone after that.

They would all calm down by the end of the next day, once they had seen Erica and Boyd and bonded with them, Derek just knew. He watched his pack trot out of the house and then texted both his new recruits to come and received the bite. Once that done, he waited patiently for them to arrive.

* * *

Of course, Derek may have overestimated Boyd and Erica's ability to deal maturely with their new powers. Stiles had been certain it would happen. He knew that with everything going on, Derek wouldn't have enough time to teach the new betas how to go on with their life without attracting attention and Erica and Boyd had always been pretty low on the totem pool of the school.

Which meant, of course, that once they were given a new opportunity to prove themselves worthy of people's attention, they didn't hesitate to take it. The moment Stiles saw Erica, he knew she hadn't heeded Derek's advice to blend in. Gone was the usually shy girl and the one that replaced her looked like a vamp. She was catching the eyes of every damn boy in the school and the murmur of gossip and pointed fingers already filled the hallway, not even five minutes after her entrance.

"This is bad," Scott muttered to Stiles, as they watched the girl make her show and play around with the few boys who were brave enough to talk to her.

"I don't know what Derek was thinking. Gerard is going to take one look at her and see a predator."

The girl in question turned to them, proof that she had heard everything and smirked at them, showing that she really didn't give a damn about their concern. Stiles shook his head and sighed. He was usually very good at thinking on his feet but he had absolutely no idea what to do for damage control.

Boyd was, thankfully, a bit better but his attitude had also changed, if not as drastically as Erica. He had a confidence he had never shown before, mostly because he had made sure no one had ever really noticed him before and he was now letting himself be seen. It would have been alright if the change had been gradual, people would have just thought he had had enough of being a wallflower and decided to do something about it but overnight? It was suspicious, even in Beacon Hills.

"Reyes is being a total bitch," were the first words out of Lydia's mouth as she arrived with Jackson behind the two boys who were still watching their new pack-mate.

Stiles snorted.

"Of course, she is. Power trip," he said as if it was obvious. "Don't think we're going to manage keeping this one from Grandpa."

The whole day was filled with dread for all of Derek's old pack members. They tried to keep an eye on both Erica and Boyd but they technically couldn't do a damn thing about it. Only Jackson, Scott or Isaac could have acted but it would most likely have ended in a brawl and made the matter worse.

The whole school was buzzing with gossip about the two new werewolves and their complete change in attitude. The other pack members were conspiring on how exactly they would get the other two to go with them at Derek's place without any incident, especially since they didn't seem all that keen on leaving their new turf yet, when Allison blanched.

"Too late," she murmured and the group turned at once to see Gerard Argent standing at the end of a corridor, looking with way too much interested at Erica as she strutted out of school.

"Shit!" Stiles cursed, before adverting his eyes, because he really didn't want the old man to catch them all staring.

The others followed his lead and then walked away, finding themselves in the parking lot, waiting for the other two to finally show up.

They didn't have to wait too long but, while Boyd stayed silent, nodding at them and coming to join them, Erica didn't seem to want to play nice at all, especially with the human of the pack.

"Why the hell are you here if you're not one of us, Stilinski?" she asked with disdain.

She didn't take the other human at party, probably because she had been made aware of Allison's hunter status and Lydia's immunity. Why she didn't include Danny was a mystery but Stiles really didn't care.

"There are humans in a pack, I'm sure Derek told you that," Stiles answered, irked. "The real question is what were you thinking acting like that? You realize you attracted Gerard's attention. Are you that stupid?"

He wasn't feeling very charitable at the moment, especially considering the game the girl had played all day long for shit and giggle when she had been told about the seriousness of the situation.

"Where the hell do you get off talking to me like that," she growled and pushed him back, wanting to prove her point.

Except that she was a new wolf and still unused to controlling her new strength. The push that, had she been human, would have forced Stiles to take a step back actually sent him waltzing against his jeep harshly and his head hit the car hard enough for them to wince at the sound. He dropped like a stone.

"Stiles!" Scott and Isaac cried and they flung themselves on their knees, at his side, to try and see if he as hurt.

Erica's face lost all color. She hadn't meant to actually hurt Stiles. Sure, she had been annoyed at being called stupid but she wasn't cruel enough to actually want to hurt someone that badly. Except that she had rendered him unconscious and seeing the glare leveled at her didn't help any.

"I didn't mean…"

"No, you didn't," Lydia cut, biting. "But you did. You do realize that if you ever do something like that in front of the hunters, you're basically giving them a reason to attack you?"

Allison nodded her agreement.

"I know Gerard would say that you were fair game because you hurt a human, if he had seen you. My dad would probably be more lenient, seeing that you didn't actually do it on purpose, but he wouldn't like it anymore."

"I'm sorry," she said and, for a second, they were all able to see the old Erica coming through.

"We need to get to Derek's," Boyd said, talking for the first time. "He will be able to say if Stiles is alright."

"He's unconscious, dumbass," Jackson said with a sneer. "He's not alright."

"Jackson!" Danny interjected before Boyd had the time to answer and things escalated. "Now's not the time. He's right, though, we need to get to Derek's."

"Yeah, well, the Alpha's gonna be pissed."

No one answered Jackson because they all knew he was right. Thankfully, Stiles had emerged slowly from his forced sleep during the trip and was conscious again when they arrived, if slightly wobbly on his legs. He had the headache from hell but was not especially hurt otherwise. He was talking and walking as they stopped the cars. They all pretended not to hear Erica's sigh of relief when she saw him.

Derek was waiting for them in front of the house, with a scowl, as they were late. His scowl only deepened once he was the state Stiles was in. He had to do himself violence not to tear someone apart and the guilty shifting of his new beta didn't help the matter.

"What happened?" he said, enunciating the words very carefully and making damn sure they all understood he meant business.

Of course, that just meant that Stiles had to try and defuse the whole situation  
with a joke, which may have worked better had Derek not been on the verge of snapping and the rest of the pack just a little less strung out.

"Woah, there, Sourwolf, don't frighten the puppies," Stiles said but no one laughed.

"I said, what happened?"

"It was my fault," Erica denounced himself, her hurting Stiles having been a good wake-up call after spending the whole day being admired from everywhere. "I pushed him."

"She didn't mean to," Isaac interjected, wanting to keep the peace and just a little bit afraid of how Derek would react. "She didn't realize her strength."

Derek was not appeased by the explanation and it was showing on his face. Lydia thought it prudent to intervene before anything else happened, that would frighten Isaac more than he already was. If Derek wanted to punish Erica, he would do it when not all the pack was there. There were more essential things to do right now.

"That's not what's important there, no offense Stiles," she said as an afterthought, realizing how her words could be taken.

"Oh, none taken," he said graciously as he swayed slightly on his feet. "Look, can we get inside, I need to sit down."

"Just go home, Stiles," Derek said. "Scott will drive you but you should rest and there will be some serious discussion that may it a bit difficult," Derek said and both new betas knew there were in for it, especially the girl. "I'll come by later to check on you."

Stiles would have protested, however the looks he received from the rest of the pack stopped him and he just gave his car key to Scott.

"You better not scratch my baby," he threatened. "And if you don't show up tonight, I'm calling you."

They left with Allison, who had gotten permission from Derek, in tow and Lydia continued what she had been trying to say, clearly put out by the interruption.

"Gerard knows about Erica and Boyd," she said. "He didn't seem to want to do anything about it for the moment, he looked happy just observing, but he may be planning something. Now, excuse me, but I've got a book to go back to."

"Go," he simply said. "And take the others with you. Boyd, Erica, you stay. I think with need to have another conversation."

The ones who were dismissed didn't lose anytime complying because they sure as hell didn't want to be there for that particular talk. It wasn't going to be pretty. The new betas had worked that out, considering the faces they were making, but then again, it was their own damn fault, even if most of the pack was still putting some of the blame on Derek for not listening to them in the first place.

* * *

Stiles had almost lost hope of Derek actually showing up when he heard someone land softly on his carpet and jumped.

"Damn it! Can't you make some noise before coming in!" he yelled in fright. "Your betas still alive?"

"Yes," he growled. "I've given them an attitude adjustment so they shouldn't be a problem tomorrow."

Stiles nodded. That was good but a bit late though. Besides, it may attract more attention for them to be back to normal.

"Gerard knows, though. Nothing will change that."

"I should have listened to you," Derek admitted and Stiles nearly fell from his bed in shock. "It would have been better. They make good recruits though."

"We never said they didn't, Derek. We just didn't think it was the right time," Stiles explained because he knew it was the truth, they did make ideal recruits.

Derek nodded and sat down on the bed, looking younger than his years, younger than Stiles had ever seen him, and defeated.

"You were pretty mad when you left yesterday," Derek said and Stiles looked down.

"I was hurt."

Derek whipped his head up and looked at Stiles, seeing the pain in his eyes.

"You suddenly reversed back to the guy who did what he wanted without any input from anyone. I thought you had decided to trust us, to trust…"

"Trust you," Derek finished for him. "I do, Stiles. More than you probably realize. I just… I want a pack, a family, and we are that to a point but we were so many more before the fire. I want the security, for all of us, that only a big pack can give us."

Stiles couldn't help reaching out for Derek, his finger caressing his face gently because he had never been that vulnerable in front of him before and it meant a lot, it proved that he did trust him and was not just saying it. Derek turned his face to nuzzle the hand on his cheek.

"You wouldn't have been as mad if someone else had been hurt," Stiles said because it was getting too much, he needed to know for sure if Danny was right.

"No," Derek admitted.

He looked at Stiles in a way that basically begged the younger boy to take the first step and Stiles understood. He had to put himself on the line because he was too young for Derek to make the first move. It had to be Stiles' idea and, taking courage, he just leant over and put his lips on Derek's.

His first kiss was everything he could have imagined and more, especially as Derek responded with a gentleness he had never felt from him before.

* * *

The disadvantage of being in a pack of werewolves was that a new relationship between two members couldn't exactly be kept a secret when everyone could smell their Alpha on Stiles. Scott had nearly choked on his own saliva when he had seen Stiles the day after they got together, at school and, of course, that had prompted Allison to ask what was going on.

Jackson, Lydia and Danny had joined on the fun and Erica and Boyd had been anything but surprised, after the way Derek had busted the girl's ass for hurting Stiles. Isaac had just grinned and that was it, there was no one among them that didn't know about the two of them getting together. It was actually worse than if they had made a general announcement.

The good thing, though, was that no one took it badly, mostly because they had actually all seen it coming. Except for Scott, who had been oblivious up now, but that wasn't exactly a big surprise.

Of course, while the pack knowing may not have been a problem, the fact that Gerard had somehow gotten wind of it was another story. The man must have been even more sneaky that they thought, because they had no idea how he could have found out.

Gerard hadn't made a single comment about it to them, they would have stayed in the dark about his new knowledge if Chris hadn't gone on helping them the best he could. Stiles found himself the recipient of another mail from the man, telling him that Gerard knew about the fact he and Derek were dating and that he may want to watch his steps even more closely than before because he was certain if was the kind of information his father would use when he decided to finally attack. It was more of when than an if right now.

* * *

A routine immediately instated itself now that they were more pack members. The training began once again with a newfound vigor for the wolves and he humans had more time to themselves, mostly because Derek was sure the fight would come to them soon and they had to be ready.

Allison was training herself more than ever in archery, and beginning with guns, getting closer to her dad than she had been in a while. Stiles could see the quiet happiness in her face when she talked about it. Things may have been shaky when she had learnt the truth about the family business but they were getting alright once again and felt even closer to her parents now that she knew the truth.

Danny and Stiles mostly hung out together, Stiles teaching Danny all he had actually learnt about the lore since the very beginning of their adventures because they may have brought Danny up t speed about the past and present events and pack life, he hadn't really had time to learn about the rest. With all that had been going on, they hadn't had time but now they could breathe again while Lydia did most of the work.

Lydia was tirelessly working on the bestiary and she was getting crankier and crankier as time went by and she still found nothing. Still, she persevered, because she wouldn't let it go until she had the answer, and this was why Stiles was not overly surprised when she finally found something.

Of course, nothing could have prepared him for the truth of the matter. Lydia showed at his place one evening while Danny was still there. Since he would have to be told anyway, there was really no reason for him not to stay. Of course, both Stiles and Danny were worried when they saw how pale Lydia was and how red her eyes were. It was as if she had cried.

"Lyd'?" Danny asked and the young woman took a determined breath.

"The creatures attacking people is called a Kanima," she began, opening the laptop she had with her and showed them the relevant page. "It's someone who was bitten by a werewolf but had unsolved business that affected the change, preventing the transformation to really take, and turned him into that lizard-like creatures we saw instead."

Suddenly Stiles knew why she was so affected. There was only one person who could fit that description.

"Jackson," he breathed. "He's the only one who could be the Kanima. And he wasn't there at the last full moon. No one has ever seen him as a wolf."

Danny shook his head.

"You can't be serious! Even if it fits, we've all been looking for this thing. You don't think he would have told us, just so we could actually stop him and help him?"

Lydia shook her head.

"Not if he doesn't remember," she explained. "Because that is what the bestiary said. The person who's the Kanima doesn't remember what they do during the transformation, which can happen any time and not only during the full moon. And the attacks are neither random, nor from Jackson's subconscious."

"What do you mean?" Stiles said because he did understand the memory loss, but not the rest. "I mean, either he attacks for a reason, then it's his subconscious, or it's at random."

"There is a reason," Lydia cut and she didn't look all that pleased. "But not one that Jackson could know. A kanima is controlled by someone. It literally latches onto someone, after the transformation, someone they will consider their master, most often someone who has thoughts of vengeance against other."

"Someone is using Jackson as a weapon?"

And damn, Stiles had never known that Danny could be scary but, at the moment, he wouldn't want to be the person in question because he was sure that the hacker would make mincemeat out of them.

"Yes."

"We just have to find who, then. We need to see who has been attacked and see if we can find a common denominator, if anyone has a reason to have a grudge against all of them."

Stiles knew that part of an investigation well because that was something that was done for any crime involving several victims, if you wanted to find the right suspect. Of course, he was certain that his father never thought he would use his lessons to actually solve a crime.

"It may be more complicated than that," Lydia interjected. "I've thought about it on the way and I think they may have been a change in the master."

"Of course!" Stiles exclaimed and Danny turned to him because he couldn't see the obvious like them. "The first kill. The first master only ever made Jackson attacks the victims, frighten them, but not kill them. There was a change of master just before the kill. It's not the same MO anymore."

Stiles deflated after he finished saying this because that made things more difficult for them.

"Of course, now we only have one victim and it will be more difficult to see who could have something against them."

"Especially if it's actually the first master," Lydia added. "The current master may have decided to have the kanima kills him so that he wouldn't be able to come forth with the pertinent information. It would not be that surprising."

Once again, Lydia only called the beast the kanima and not Jackson. Stiles mused that she probably didn't want to see Jackson as a killer. Of course, Stiles realized it wasn't the boy's fault but they had been absolutely blind. One of their own had been going around attacking people and, apparently, having emotional problems and memory blanks and they hadn't even seen it. God, it was a mess.

Plus, they didn't have any clue on how to begin how to search for the master, considering that Lydia was probably a hundred percent right in her reasoning. There was no way the current master would have let his predecessor live as he was a liability and a danger for him. Which meant that they had no victimology to go by, not as long as there was no new victim.

"What do we do now?" Danny asked, voicing the question none of them wanted to answer to.

"We need to tell Derek," Stiles said because they really did and they also needed to have a pack meeting where everyone would be told but, first: "We also need to tell Jackson, probably first and in private."

Lydia and Danny nodded, knowing that it would be the hardest part because how exactly do you tell one of your friends that he was the creature they were all looking for and had sworn to kill?

"And then we need to know how to solve Jackson's problems so he won't be a kanima anymore," Lydia added because she was not going to let them kill Jackson, not for something that wasn't his fault.

They needed to find the root of the problem and solve it. For now, though, they needed to sleep and think about what they were going to do on a rested mind. Of course, that was easier said than done.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10/12 (+epilogue)

They decided that Lydia and Danny would be the ones to speak to Jackson, on their own. It was for the best, really, considering that the boy was probably not going to take the new very well. At least, he would be among his closest friends, especially new that Lydia was becoming more and more ready to take him back as time went by, when he heard the truth. Of course, the rest of the pack would have to be told their finding, too.

Stiles, on the other hand, was the one who had been designed to talk to Derek. He wanted to inform the Alpha first, before telling the rest of the betas and Allison. Mostly, because they weren't exactly sure how Derek would take it, considering he had been the one to bite Jackson without making sure his issues wouldn't become a problem later on, and hadn't even made sure he knew how to control the change. After all, if it had been the case, he would have noticed he wasn't able to change into a wolf at all.

Stiles approached the Hale house only an hour after Lydia's horrific revelation, in the middle of the night. He had to admit, it was quite a lot better now that it didn't look like something straight out of a horror movie. Sure, it was still daunting to navigate the forest during nighttime, especially considering he now knew exactly what kind of creatures could roam there, however he didn't really have a choice if he wanted to catch the Alpha all alone before the next pack meeting. Now that the pack had grown, it was becoming more and more difficult, especially considering Lydia and Danny had gone to Jackson at the same time.

He got out of the jeep right in front of the house and wasn't overly surprised to see Derek already waiting for his on the porch. Stiles knew Derek would recognize the noise his jeep made just about anywhere and must have been worried. It showed because, much to Stiles' disappointment, he didn't have time to greet his boyfriend before he found himself being interrogated.

"What are you doing there?" Derek asked, concerned. "What happened? Is everyone alright?" he added, even though he would almost certainly have known if one of them had been hurt.

"Everybody's fine Derek. Lydia found out about the beast," he said and Derek stilled completely. "Can we go in first?"

Derek nodded and kissed Stiles 'hello', now that he was sure no one was hurt, before leading him inside. Yes, he was extremely impatient but, if Stiles had decided to show up in the middle of the night, it stood to reason he wasn't going to delay his revelation for too long. He was trying to rein in some of his controlling behavior and he could wait a minute for the boy to get comfortable.

"It's called a kanima," Stiles began once they were sitting down comfortably on the couch. "I'm not sure if you've heard of it before?"

Stiles asked because he knew there was still a possibility of Derek having heard about the lore in his youth, considering who his family was. Maybe he just hadn't connected the dot, or knew enough about it to be able to recognize it when he saw it, but his hopes were dashed when Derek shook his head and Stiles braced himself for having to say what he did.

"Basically, it's a werewolf bite gone wrong," he said quietly and quickly, never letting his eyes leave his boyfriend.

Derek looked as if he had had the wind knocked out of him, because it meant he was responsible. The only werewolves in town were the ones he had bitten himself, except for Scott but they knew he couldn't be the beast.

"Who?" Derek said, almost certain the other kids must have worked it out themselves.

"Jackson. It apparently happens if someone is bitten when having personal troubles, something that prevent them from really becoming part of the pack. Jackson has a lot of issues and we have seen he has problem integrating with us. He also didn't come to you for the full moon."

"I've never seen him change," Derek stated. "I should have reached out to him, at least enough to make sure he could control the change, but he has been trying."

"It's not your fault, Derek. You couldn't have known anything like that was possible," Stiles tried to comfort the Alpha, knowing he must have been blaming himself.

Quite frankly, Derek had no other choice than to blame himself because what kind of Alpha didn't make sure to teach all his betas the basics of the transformation. When Jackson hadn't shown up for the full moon, he should have hunted him down and demanded answer but there hadn't been any wolf attack and he had had Isaac to think about. He hadn't even really realized it had also been Jackson's first full moon. Now the kid had become a murder and it was his own fault.

"The man in the wood," Derek began.

"It's not your fault," Stiles insisted again. "And it's not Jackson's either. Lydia found out a kanima doesn't ever act of his own volition. He's controlled by someone. Actually, Lydia thinks the man who was found dead must have been the one controlling Jackson in the beginning and that someone else has managed to take control and killed him to silence a potential witness."

"A master?" Derek said, growling because someone was controlling his betas and it wasn't even a question of what kind of things they were making him do, it was the fact that someone could exercise control like this that wasn't okay with him.

Stiles just nodded, realizing that now was hardly the time for one of his smart-ass remark, considering the rage he could see dancing in his boyfriend's eyes. He chose to go on with another line of reasoning.

"Lydia and Danny are talking to Jackson. We thought it would be better coming from them than you. He will at least listen and he will need them there the most," Stiles said, not unkindly or trying to negate Derek's role in Jackson's life.

However, even Derek couldn't say anything against that because he knew perfectly well it was the pure truth.

"We will talk to the pack tomorrow. I need to talk to Jackson first, make sure he's alright, so the meeting will be later than usual. I'll text everyone so don't show up until I do."

Stiles nodded and then yawned, because it was high time for him to go to sleep. He should have been out hours ago but, unfortunately, it wasn't easy to respect a good sleep-cycle during a crisis in Beacon Hills.

"I'll drive you home," Derek said immediately. "You can't drive like this. You already shouldn't have driven like that. You could have had an accident."

"I needed to tell you," Stiles defended his own actions.

"You could have called me," the older man sighed. "I would have come."

Stiles opened his mouth but no words actually left and he closed it again because he had no idea what he could say to that. For the life of him, he couldn't work out why he hadn't actually done that. God, he must really have been way too tired if he hadn't thought about calling Derek instead of driving all the way there. Still, now that he was here with his boyfriend, he didn't want to go back home, to his empty house.

"Can't I stay here tonight?" he asked Derek, eyes pleading.

Derek wanted to yes without hesitation, god knows he did, but Stiles was still a teenager and he wasn't sure it was the right thing to do, especially considering who exactly the teenager in question was.

"Your father," he began his argument.

"Is not home tonight," Stiles finished, having already anticipated this particular argument. "He actually went out of town on a lead…. And can't you just tell they are following the wrong one? He will be back tomorrow in the afternoon. Please, Derek, I promise I just want to sleep, nothing more. I think I'm too tired to do anything else, anyway."

Considering that he was a hormonal teenager, with his first boyfriend ever, that was saying something.

Derek ended up caving in front of his puppy eyes and, really, he should have been used to it with Isaac around, but it was different with Stiles. It always was. He led the boy to his bedroom and they spent the rest of the night taking comfort in each other's arm, Stiles sleeping more soundly than he had in a long time. Derek had to admit, though, it was good to have his boyfriend where he knew he was safe.

* * *

The following day, Stiles was surprised to see his father's cruiser parked in the driveway when he came back from school, as he hadn't thought the man would be there so early. After coming back from out of town, he had thought he would have spent quite some time at the station, bringing his men up to speed about what he had found out.

It wasn't that he wasn't glad to see his father, but he was; since these problems had begun, he had barely seen the man. However, it would make it more difficult for him to sneak out later tonight. He would have to have an excuse if he wanted to be able to attend the pack meeting… unless he arranged something with Scott. That was a good idea, actually. He took his phone out and sent a text to his best friend, telling the situation and asking him to call at the house, so that his dad would know why he left.

"Hey dad!" he exclaimed as he opened the door after sliding his phone back in his pocket, trying not to betray his conspiring for later on.

Luckily, his dad was more than used to his weird behavioral pattern and didn't comment on his fidgeting; he probably just thought that Stiles had had too much caffeine, or had forgotten to take his meds, when he saw him that nervous.

"Hey, son. I'm going to catch some sleep, so I won't be in your way long. I just wanted to wait until you were back. I've got some news for you. I've asked one my men to keep an eye on Gerard Argent while I was out of town. Didn't tell him why, just that it had to stay below the radar. He's a newbie so he didn't ask too many questions."

Stiles bit his lips. He wasn't exactly sure it had been a good idea to send a still green officer out after someone of Gerard's caliber. Of course, Stiles wouldn't be able to justify his fear if he told his dad that because, well, there should be no reason to suspect that Gerard was anything more than an old man who was a bit too violent with his family. It wasn't as if Stiles could say he was an extremely dangerous man because, really, how he manage to explain that?

"Bored out of his mind, I presume?" Stiles asked.

And no, he didn't actually presume that but he sure as hell hoped it was the case, that Gerard hadn't done anything to attract the attention of the police. It would at least mean they still had some time before everything went down. If Gerard was beginning to act in a way that law enforcement deemed interesting, it meant that things were going to escalate soon enough. But, of course, when had life ever gone the way Stiles wanted it to?

"No, actually. That man is shadier than we first thought," the Sheriff said and Stiles swallowed because he really wasn't going to like what he was going to hear, he just knew it. "He's apparently done a few recons in the industrial sector of the town, particularly around the unused warehouse. I think there may be something more to it than we thought."

Well, shit. Okay, that was very helpful information but now his father were involved into a mess that he really didn't want him to know about and, apparently, another policeman was too. He certainly didn't know what would happen should Gerard ever notice the man following him around. He certainly hoped the young officer was discreet, because otherwise he was fucked. And Gerard would certain follow the trail back to Stiles, because there was no way he didn't know his father was the Sheriff.

"Weird," Stiles laughed, just a bit on the edge of hysterically. "Can't count on these old men to be what they seem anymore."

It was forced humor and his dad noticed, frowning.

"Something's wrong, Stiles?" he asked. "It's nothing to worry about. We're just keeping an eye on things for now. I'll make sure nothing is leaked around the station, as long as there is nothing going on. Though, if we see something, it may end up in a full-blown investigation. We won't be able to ignore it. For now, there is too much going on to bother with it as long as he stays on the right side of the law. I don't like it, though. I can't put my finger on why, but I don't like it at all."

"Well, as you said, nothing you can do right now. It's not illegal to wonder around, even if disaffected warehouse," he said, ending his sentence on a grimace. "Better to focus on the beast. Any news on this side of things?" he asked, carefully not using the word 'kanima', because that was what was expected of him and he didn't want to disappoint.

He knew there would be no news, though. Lydia and Danny had gone to see Jackson last night, after leaving his room, and they had stayed with him all night long. He had been in school during the day, not missing a single class, so there was really no way the kanima could have made an appearance or done any damage.

"You know I can't tell you about it, Stiles," his dad sighed, the expression of a man who had had to have this particular conversation a hundred times over.

He was going to say something more but, whatever it was, he was interrupted by the phone ringing. Stiles was going to take it, mostly because he knew it was Scott coming to the rescue, was absolutely certain of it, but his dad was quicker than him.

"Stilinski house," he answered very professional-like, even though the station would have called him on his cell phone instead of the landline. "Hey! Scott, it has been a while. How are you?... And your mother?... Good, good. Tell her to call me one of these days, okay. It has been way too long since we commiserated… Yes, yes, of course, I'm handing you over to Stiles. Take care, Scott."

"Scott?" Stiles mock-asked, with his eyebrow raised, as his father handed him the phone.

"Who else?"

"Hey man!"

"Hey, Stiles. Well, you asked me to call you once we had to do to Derek's so I'm calling. He wants all of us at the house, immediately, so you better come here quickly."

"Sure, I'll be right there. See you," he hung up.

"Problems?" his dad asked.

"Nah…. Just Scott and his abysmal revision skills. I promised him I would help him study."

His dad nodded, not having any reason to disbelieve the story, mostly because it would hardly been the first time something like that happened. Stiles had always taken the time to help Scott with his homework, there was no reason for things to change now. Stiles felt a bit guilty to see his dad not even questioning what he was telling him but he knew it was for the best.

"Don't come back too late," the Sheriff told him.

"No worry, daddy-o. I'll be home for curfew," he assured, leaving straight back and going to his jeep.

He would be home by curfew anyway, unless an absolute emergency happened and forced him to stay, but he really hoped it wouldn't the case. Not only could they use a breather, but it would make him feel somewhat better if at least one of the things he told his dad wasn't a lie.

All the way to the Hale house, he wondered how he would face Jackson, knowing what he did. He knew he would have to curb his instinctive habit of dealing with difficult and serious matter by making jokes about it because he really didn't think the other boy would be in the mood to react favorably to it. To be fair, he doubted than any of the pack would be.

Eventually, he arrived at his destination and the grim faces of his friends welcomed him as he walked into the den. He sat down heavily on the floor, in front of Derek who was sitting down on his couch, looming over them. The rest of the pack were all sitting on the floor, except for Lydia, maybe in deference to Derek's place or, most likely, because the carpet was really soft and it was better to be able to spread out on it than sitting on the chairs decorating the place.

"We have no idea who the master is," Derek told him because, evidently, being the last one to arrive, they had all been talking about the situation for a while now and none of them had been able to come up with a possible name

"It's difficult to guess as long as no one is targeted," Stiles admitted because he was in the dark as much as them.

"I don't want to kill someone else," Jackson said and, for once, the words weren't cocky or arrogant, but soft and quiet.

None of them could blame him. How in the world could he go on as if nothing had happened when he knew exactly what he had done, even though he could remember any of it? He just couldn't believe he had attacked all these people but Lydia and Danny had been very convincing and the slight blank spot he had in his memory, coincidently at the time of the various sighting of the kanima, had been proof enough that something had gone wrong with his transformation.

"You didn't kill anyone," Lydia stated, her protective instinct towards the boy showing and all the others agreed with her.

"You can't blame the weapon for the crime," Stiles added, knowing it wasn't the nicest analogy but the only one he could come up with at the moment which may be of some help to the boy. "You can only blame the one who wield it and that's not you."

Jackson didn't look completely convinced by the argument but still managed at small smile and the fact that he hadn't even talked back and made fun of Stiles' comment was proof enough of his fragile state of mind. Not that he would particularly mind Jackson being nicer to him, but it just didn't feel natural.

Isaac crawled on the floor until he was besides Jackson and made sure to make physical contact. Stiles was the only one who noticed the slight softening of Derek's feature as he watched attentively the interaction. Isaac was the one who showed the most wolfish features, who had taken the most easily to pack life. However, Stiles had noticed that all of them were becoming more and more touchy feely with each other, even the humans.

Jackson patted Isaac on the shoulder, knowing what the young man was trying to convey and thankful for it.

There was a blank in the conversation and none of them felt like breaking it. There was so little time they could spend together without problems to deal with and Stiles reclined against Derek's legs, feeling his boyfriend's hand in his hair.

Unfortunately, they still had to talk about the situation at hand.

"Is there anyone else who has information to share?" Derek said after a few minutes of calm and silence.

"I think Gerard is going to act," Stiles whispered, his eyes closed.

"Why?" Derek asked, stopping petting Stiles' hair, and Allison seemed to straighten up, inquisitive and probably worried before of her closeness to the man.

"I've asked my dad to keep an eye on him, discreetly. Don't worry, he doesn't know why. I can't tell you exactly what I told him but…. Anyway, he told me that Gerard seemed very interested in the abandoned warehouses," he explained summarily.

"He's doing reconnaissance," Lydia confirmed his opinion. "And he must need a big space, not in the open, far from the center of the town. That make some sense, he needs a secluded place to act without being disturbed but what exactly does he want to do and what's our role into it?"

The others didn't know what to answer because, really, they couldn't see what Gerard may have been preparing.

"Do you have any idea, Allison," Derek asked. "A hunter technique you may have heard about?"

Allison looked devastated not to have any idea to give anyone else.

"No, there is nothing in what dad has taught me that comes to my mind. And Gerard doesn't trust me enough to keep me in his confidence and teach me more. I know he would probably have a very different way of hunting but what I don't understand is why he would wait so long and have to organize that much just to attack our pack. We're not that dangerous? And if he had acted immediately, we would have been a lot easier to take down."

"He wants something specific," Lydia said. "He has a plan that goes beyond wanting to rid the world of the evil of werewolves. We need to find his angle."

"We have been trying to find his angle since the day he came in Beacon Hills," Jackson interjected, becoming chattier now that the subject had changed. "We have nothing new here. I don't think we will find anything more for the moment."

"We could snoop?" Scott suggested. "I mean in his personal stuff, like his office at the school or his room at your house."

He seemed hesitant to suggest it, mostly because he knew it would be very dangerous and that none of them were going to like it. Stiles thought he was still right, though. It appeared to be the only way they may be capable of finding anything of relevance. Of course, that was if they didn't get caught because, if that was the case, Stiles didn't even want to think about what the man would do. After all, he knew for certain that the idea of hitting a teenager wouldn't stop him.

"It's dangerous," Derek began slowly. "But it may very well be our only choice."

"Wait!" Danny exclaimed. "Before we try something too dangerous, maybe I should try to hack into his computer? If he always has it on him, like Mister Argent told Stiles and Lydia, there may be some answer on it."

Derek nodded, thinking it may be a good idea. At least, they would have a starting point and, if it wasn't fruitfully, then they could always go back to their original idea of snooping around. Though, if Gerard was so attached to his laptop, it probably contained more than just his copy of the bestiary.

As the Alpha was going to approve of Danny's idea and tell him to go for it as soon as he could, he was interrupted by a cell phone ringing.

Allison startled when she felt the vibration coming from her pocket, as if was hers.

"Sorry," she apologized before taking it out and opening the new text with trepidation, as all the friends who had her number were there.

She opened it and blanched so visibly than they all knew it wasn't a good new.

"Allison?" Scott asked, worried about his girlfriend because she wasn't one to scare easily and that meant something was really wrong.

"It's my dad," she whispered because, somehow, talking out loud seemed wrong at the moment. "Other hunters are at the house. They are Gerard's lackey. He's telling me I should probably sleep over with one of you."

"You can stay with me," Scott proposed immediately and Stiles snorted.

"Yeah, sure, your mom is gonna be just fine with that," he said sarcastically.

Scott didn't even have time to defend his position that Lydia spoke out.

"You can come over to mine. Erica, you can ask your parents if they are okay with you coming too. We can have a sleepover all three of us. We should get to know each other better if we're really going to be pack."

Erica smiled at that, because it was nice to be integrated for once. She had never really been all that popular because of her health problem and, even if it was better since the day she had been bitten, being invited for the night at the most popular girl's house was something she had never thought possible.

Allison also nodded and sent back a quick text to her dad, telling him she was going to Lydia's and not to worry about her. She also sent Derek's thanks for the warning.

"Well, at least this time we're sure," Stiles cut. "It's going to happen soon even if we still have no idea what _it_ is."

"And how I'm involved," Jackson interjected. "Considering that he hasn't taken a particular interest in me, not more than any of you anyway."

"I had almost forgotten about that," Stiles muttered, garnering weird looks from the others. "What, I'm more worried about Gerard, okay. Now that we know about Jackson, we should be able to control him, no?"

The others appeared pretty doubtful about it but they wisely chose not to say anything.

"You think that Gerard know who the Master is?" Isaac asked. "That's why he's not worried?"

None of them answered him but they knew it was a definite possibility and one they didn't like to think about.


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11/12 (+epilogue)

To no one's surprise, the next few days were hardly the most pleasant, to say the least. All of the pack lived in an almost paranoiac state of mind, wondering each morning it this would be the day Gerard chose to struck. They had begun to walk in group, never alone, with always at least two people together, because they knew they would be less vulnerable like that. Derek was the only who was exempt of the buddy-system, mostly because he couldn't hang out at school during the day and, therefore, couldn't stay with anyone else. It was the disadvantage of being the only adult of the group. Stiles didn't like it but he had to admit Derek would be the one more capable of protecting himself. That was already something.

Of course, nothing happened at all. Stiles would have almost preferred if it did, mostly because it would mean they would be fixed finally. For now, though, they were still playing the waiting game and it was becoming harder and harder to act as if nothing was wrong with them. Still, they couldn't afford to tip off their parents and make it obvious there was something big on their mind or they would have a moment of peace.

The problem was that they all assumed that, should Gerard attack, it would be someone in the pack who would be targeted. Stiles should have remembered the old adage about assumption. However, as if was logical to think so, they had no reason to believe otherwise, which was the reason the way it all went to hell surprised them and they found themselves caught by surprise and not ready to act at all.

Stiles was lounging on Scott's carpet, Scott and Allison sitting a few feet away, in the empty McCall house. it had been so long since he had time to just hang out with his best friend, with no supernatural-related emergency or conversation that, when the boy had invited him, he had said yes, immediately, even though he knew Allison would also be there. Mainly, because he actually liked the huntress and, if she was there, Scott wouldn't spent the evening complaining about how much he missed her, which was a step up. Plus, she was considerate enough she would make sure to remind Scott they weren't alone, so it was more than alright with him to share his best friend.

They were chilling out in Scott's room, trying and somewhat succeeding in relaxing and let their stress level go down when, suddenly, Scott straightened up, as if he had been struck by a lightening. Both other teens looked bewildered and not a little concerned, especially since they had no idea of what had captured Scott's attention.

"Mom!" he exclaimed and they could see him begin to lose control of the change.

"What?" Stiles wondered. "Is she here?"

That didn't seem all too likely and Stiles doubted it would concern Scott so much even if this was the case, as they all had parental permission to be there.

"She's in danger. She's being attacked. I could hear her scream."

Without even waiting for an answer, Scott took off, half-transformed, out of the window, leaving both Allison and Stiles behind. The two teens were on their feet in no time, immediately running after him, down the stairs. They both flung themselves into Stiles' jeep and they didn't even take the time to talk before they were on the road.

"You know where he's going?" Allison asked after she failed in her attempt at contacting Scott, who must have already been at his destination.

Stiles nodded.

"Mrs. McCall was supposed to go to the station tonight, meet my dad. It wasn't anything important but, you know, they like to meet and complain to each other about me and Scott. She's probably still there."

Allison put a hand on Stiles' arm, not enough to take his attention off the road but enough for him to know she was there and wanted to provide him with some comfort. Because if Mrs. McCall was being attacked while she was at the station, it also meant that his father was in danger and Allison knew how much Stiles cared about him. He was the only family he had left and that meant something.

Stiles didn't care about speed limit right now, as they screeched to a halt in front of the station; they were out of the car almost before it stopped. The fact that no one had come to see what was going on informed them that something was very wrong and the low growling and hissing coming from inside let them know what was happening before they even set foot inside the building.

Jackson was there, they knew it. How the hell was he able to get away from Danny and Lydia, who were supposed to be with him, without anyone knowing? Of course, they couldn't have stopped him if he had been called away by his master, since they were only human, but they would have at least texted them to warn them they had lost him. Stiles really hoped the two of them weren't hurt, not only because he didn't want his friends being in harm way, but also because he knew Jackson would never forgive himself if that was the case.

They ran in at full speed and, for a moment, both of them were petrified, unable to react. Nothing could have prepared them about that, it was an absolute massacre. They could see the bodies all around them and Stiles had to fight his gag reflex in order not to throw up. A side glance to Allison told him she wasn't fairing much better. They saw Scott battling it out with the kanima and then Stiles saw his father lying on the floor and everything else stopped mattering.

He ran at his side, not even bothering to check if there was any other threat around, and fell down on his knees at his father's side. For a moment, he was frozen in fear but, then, he extended trembling finger to touch his father's neck, at pulse point.

He thought he would pass out under the strength of his relief. The Sheriff's pulse was strong, he had most likely only been knocked out. He was still alive and not dead. Stiles hadn't completely failed to protect him, as he had sworn he would do. He was so caught up in his thought he never even heard both Allison and Melissa approaching. The girl was watching the fight from the sidelines, cursing herself for not having a weapon on her and Stiles couldn't let her wallow.

"You couldn't have known it was going to happen," he said and, yes, he was aware of how much of a hypocrite he was being right now because he did blame himself for not protecting his father better but there was really no need for her to know that.

"What's going on Stiles?" Melissa asked and if there was a touch of hysterics in her voice, he didn't comment on it.

She had just seen her son half-wolfed out go after a giant lizard and half the station being killed off or knocked out. She was absolutely entitled to have a freak out. The fact that she was still moving around and not either passed out or frozen in fear was already a testament of her courage. However, he hated seeing her so pale. She had always appeared as a pillar of strength to him, not crumbling down even when her husband left and being punchy whenever she talked to him. She was on the verge of tears now and it just seemed wrong.

He took her hands and squeezed, trying to comfort her slightly.

"We will explain everything, I swear. Let's just make sure we're safe first," Stiles said and she gave him a smile but also a look that promised a world of hurt if he didn't keep his word.

They almost jumped out of their skin when the kanima ran past them and, at least, they knew the fight was over for now and they would have some respite.

"Mom?" Scott asked in a small voice, as he walked towards them, limping slightly, his wolfish features still adorning his face, mostly because he was too freaked out to have his mother aware of his secret to change back.

Stiles prayed that it was going to end up well for his best friend, that Melissa was not going to freak out on Scott. However, she was a mother first, and an awesome one at that, so she just took a deep breath and released it slowly then, if a surer voice than any of the teens would have managed in the same situation, she took complete control of the situation.

"Scott, you're my baby. Nothing in the world will change that but you will have a lot to explain to me. And you will probably be grounded until the end of high school. We need to call the hospital, tell them to send several ambulances and paramedics to do some triage here. We will get checked out and, once everything is taken care of, the three of you will be coming home with me and explain in great details what the hell just happened, got it Mister?"

Scott nodded and, had the situation been any less grave, Stiles would probably burst out in laugher at the dropping expression on Scott's face. The wolf-boy been scolded by his mom was hilarious. Now was certainly not the time, though.

"My dad?" he asked.

"He's fine, Stiles. He just hit his head."

"Did he see any of it?"

Melissa looked quizzically at him, working out what the question meant. She apparently wasn't the only one to be in the dark and she didn't like it much. Of course, she would first hear her son and his friends before going around telling the other parents what was going on. She needed to fully understand it first.

"He was knocked out immediately. He won't know what happened."

Stiles breathed out in relief and the next hour passed in a sort of daze. He was relieved to hear the paramedics on the scene confirm Melissa's diagnostic about his father but the rejoicing was quite tempered by the knowledge that a dozen officers or so had died that night. The only bright stop was that most of those who had been knocked out hadn't seen anything and, for the few that had, they probably wouldn't trust their own recollection of the events, thinking it was mostly hallucination and what's not.

Eventually, it was time to go to the McCall's and explain everything to Melissa. There was exiting the crime scene when Stiles' phone chose to chime up. Stiles nearly dropped his phone, trying to look at the text as quickly as possible, hoping it would be Danny or Lydia. Unfortunately, it wasn't. It was from Derek and hardly good news.

"Shit," he muttered and the other three immediately turned to him, inquiring looks on their faces.

"What happened?" Scott asked promptly, worried about the expression on his best friend's features.

"Erica and Boyd left," he said and Allison gasped, understanding what it meant for the pack and especially for their Alpha. "I know I said I was coming with you to help you explain but I can't leave Derek alone. He can't be alone right now."

He was almost desperate, begging them to understand, and Allison put a calming hand on his arm.

"Scott and I can manage to explain everything. You need to go now," she said because she may not have been a wolf but her parents had taught her enough to know what Derek must be going through right at this moment, having two of his beats choosing to abandon the pack, especially considering what had happened to his first pack. Erica and Boyd didn't know the damages they had caused.

"Stiles," Melissa began but Scott cut her off before she had time to go any further.

"I'll explain everything mom, but Derek needs Stiles right now. We will tell you all about it," he promised firmly and it was in these kinds of moments that Stiles could see the leader Scott was capable of being.

He thanked his two friends and promised Melissa he would talk to her once everything was settled down, mostly to make damn sure she wouldn't go babbling to his father and tell him every single revelations they gave her. For now, though, he had to go to his Alpha, to his boyfriend, and make sure he wouldn't do anything stupid.

The road to Derek was passed in a kind of worried haze. He was driving recklessly, he knew it, especially when he wasn't in any state to be taking the wheel in the first place, but he had to get there as quickly as possible and since there was no way anyone around was monitoring the speed limit, he just went for it. He never took so little time to rejoin the Hale house. For once, Derek wasn't waiting for him on the porch, one more clue that something was wrong.

He went straight in and ran to where Derek was sitting on the couch and basically threw himself on him because the Alpha radiated misery. Derek, for once, decided to take the comfort offered and hid his face in the crook of Stiles' neck, inspiring deeply and taking solace in the smell of pack.

Of course, that lasted as long as he registered the whiff of blood and fear that was permeating Stiles' whole body and Derek almost sky-rocketed off the couch in worry.

"What the hell happened?"

"The station was attacked. Lots of deaths but my dad will be fine and he's still in the dark about everything. Scott was able to make Jackson back off but we still don't know where he is or how he was able to get there without Danny and Lydia telling us anything was wrong. Mrs. McCall has seen Scott half wolfed-out so Allison and him are explaining everything to her. That's why they didn't come with me but, as soon as they're finished, they will be here."

That was a lot of information to give in one go but there was no going around it and it was better off his chest. They had no time.

"What happened with Boyd and Erica?"

Derek just shrugged, pain still fresh in his heart.

"I think the whole situation became too much to handle for them. They wanted the transformation for the advantages it would offer them but they weren't ready to accept the drawback and the fall-out, to be targeted by Argent. I should have waited until after everything had calmed down, given them the time to adapt," Derek said.

"It's not your fault. You explained to them what it meant to become a werewolf, they were aware of the circumstances. They chose to take the bite even knowing all this. It's their own fault. They shouldn't have walked out on us now that we need them the most."

Stiles wasn't feeling very charitable with them right now. Of course, there was still a part of him that couldn't blame them for wanting to bail out, but he didn't think he could have been able to leave his friends in need, especially now that they had integrated themselves with the group. And hurting Derek that way, when they knew what he had gone through before, was a bad decision even if they had probably not considered how much it would impact on him.

Both of them huddled on the couch, though, not talking anymore but just taking comfort in each other. Stiles wasn't sure how long had passed when he felt Derek's ears perk up.

"Who is it?" Stiles asked, knowing what it meant.

"Allison and Scott," Derek answered. "They are with Isaac."

Stiles' eyebrow shot up. With everything that had happened, he hadn't thought about the other wolf. He knew he had been spending more time with Boyd and Erica, in their little buddy system. But with the two of them bailing, he would have found himself alone. He had kind of bonded with Scott, though, so it was not great surprise he would have gone to the other boy, especially if he had been able to feel Scott's distress.

The three of them showed up and Scott did look a bit better so Melissa must not have reacted all that badly.

"Mom wants to see you once everything calms down," Scott said in guise of hello, assuming Stiles had already told him what happened. "She wants more information that we could give."

Derek nodded, understanding why Melissa would want to talk to him, especially considering the kids must have told her he was the only adult in the pack.

"She also wants to grill my parents," Allison added. "We told her to wait until the situation with Gerard is over."

Stiles snorted.

"You may want to warn your parents, Alli'. Mrs. M. may seem pretty chill but she can get scary when she wants to. And if I remember correctly, I'm told their first meeting was not exactly ideal."

Both teens winced because that was their own fault in the first place and they knew it perfectly. Isaac, however, looked interested.

"What happened?" he piped up.

"Just those two playing hooky and forgetting it was parents-teachers night. They kind of accused each others' children and… well, I'm sure you can imagine. Of course, they were interrupted by an actual mountain lion so it just ended there."

Of course, the good mood just crashed after that because there really wasn't anything good going on right now and their little interlude was over.

"They are really gone?" Isaac said in a small voice. "I was worried when they didn't show up when we had decided but then I couldn't feel the bond anymore."

The bonds that he was the only one to feel constantly, except for Derek. The others had been able to feel them, at some point, for the wolves at any rate, but Isaac was much more receptive and was, therefore, more in tune with all of them. Derek was aware of all of his pack members because he was the Alpha but he was sometimes so overwhelmed by one of them that he couldn't really feel the rest at the same time, which explained why he hadn't known about the situation at the station.

Derek nodded.

"Yes, they chose to leave the pack voluntarily. They also decided to run away, so I don't know exactly where they are but we are to respect their decision. The pack must be a choice."

All of them looked down, feeling as if they had lost part of their family. It was what it was but they felt like orphan, a brother and a sister had left never to return to them and it hurt them all. At least, they could grieve the loss together.

The silence was shattered by the three werewolves who looked up at the door at the same time. Derek was out of the door before anyone had time to say something and the others all followed. They stopped in their track when they saw the last three missing pack member walking towards them. Lydia and Danny had Jackson between them, both holding his hand, but it was still easy for them to see the lacrosse team captain wasn't fine.

Derek hovered as they entered the place and Stiles was able to see some contusion on both humans, answering the question on why no one was called when Jackson went away. He probably found them unconscious and got them back into the land of the living after his disastrous attack at the station.

"I don't know what I did after I knocked them out," Jackson said in a voice devoid of all inflection.

The others looked at each other and it was enough for Lydia to notice.

"You know what happened," Lydia stated. "Tell us."

They hesitated.

"I need to know," Jackson almost begged them, a far cry from his usual demeanor. "I need to know even if it's bad."

Stiles was the one to answer. It should have been Derek, but he only knew the basics and wasn't there so it would be easier for the teenager to describe the events, even if it was worse than whatever they may think.

"The kanima attacked the police station. Scott was able to drive you away but…"

"I killed people."

"It wasn't you!" Allison interjected vehemently. "You weren't in control of your actions. It wasn't your fault."

"How many?" he asked.

"A dozen," Stiles admitted. "The rest were knocked out. They shouldn't be able to remember very clearly what happened so we're safe. Though Danny, maybe you should try to hack into their camera surveillance system and erase everything so that there's no risk to be discovered."

Derek backed Stiles' idea because being discovered on top of everything was really the last thing they needed.

"Your father?" Lydia asked because she knew the Sheriff must have been working, though she imagined he wasn't dead seeing that Stiles wasn't a complete mess.

"Knocked out, but he's fine and he still doesn't know anything."

Jackson, for his part, seemed to be having a panic attack and, while they didn't immediately realize it, once he began breathing badly, they all snapped their attention to him. Derek stepped in, as his Alpha, and took him in his arms, comforting him more as a wolf would do than a human and the rest of the pack made sure to keep in some kind of physical contact. Luckily, it calmed him down soon enough. Still, they kept close to him even as he ended up sitting on the couch.

"We need to find out who the master is," Lydia said and, this time, she had murder in her eyes because she was done playing around.

Stiles could understand. His dad had been almost killed and it would have been his friend who was used for it. It was absolutely imperative for them to know who would have wanted to attack the police station. Were they getting to close to him or her? Was that to put them off trail? Yet, it didn't seem probable as they didn't have any idea of what was going on. Stiles knew that, even if his dad didn't want to tell him. He had long ago found out how to know about the station business.

Then it hit Stiles like a sledgehammer and he gasped out loud, all eyes turning to him.

"What?" Derek asked him in a harsh voice that Stiles didn't take personally.

"Gerard," he whispered.

"It's more important to find out who the master is," Lydia countered and Stiles realized that, for once, she was too involved to make the connection immediately.

"No, Gerard is the master," Stiles repeated, explaining. "It… it makes sense. He must have realized he was being followed and took measure against it. It's my fault. God, it's because I asked my dad to keep an eye on him that he attacked them. He thought the cops were on his scent and wanted to stop them before they found him."

Stiles was almost hyperventilating. His dad could have been killed, several officers had actually suffered that fate, and it was all because of him.

"Breathe," Derek ordered. "Breathe, Stiles…. In and out…"

When exactly had he sat down on the floor, with Derek behind him? Oh, he must have actually hyperventilated. He supposed he should be glad it hadn't morphed into a full-blow panic attack. That would have been bad.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he said when he finally looked into the worried eyes of the rest of the pack. "It's over. But I'm right, aren't I? Gerard is the obvious choice."

"It would explain why he wasn't worried about the kanima. Because he was the one controlling it, so he had no reason to be concerned. He wouldn't attack without his say so, so the only people in danger were the ones he had a grudge against. We should have realized it sooner," Lydia berated herself and them.

She wasn't wrong, Stiles thought. They had been so worried about handling both situations that they hadn't even thought about linking them both together. Of course, they had also never thought that Gerard, as a hunter, would use a supernatural creature as a weapon. They had thought him more likely to kill it than use it. The fact that he was actually capable of doing so added quite a horrific dimension to the reason he was so interested in the pack.

Now, they didn't only have to worry about being killed but also used for another plan that may end up with them killing people. That was just great. And here, they had thought the man may have some morals left, maybe not where werewolves were concerned but humans. Apparently, that had already been too much to ask. He would kill anyone who got in his way.

"Shit!" Scott exclaimed and it was enough to summarize all their thoughts.

Stiles couldn't help but agree.


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12/12 (+epilogue)

The whole pack had stayed at Derek's house all night long. Stiles had texted Chris to tell him about their revelation about Gerard's role in the kanima's debacle. The man had answered by saying Allison should stay away from the house as much as she could. For once, Victoria had readily agreed, as she hadn't known Gerard was that unhinged when she had contacted him for help.

They had tried their best to help Jackson, who was the pack member the more affected, but none of them were at their best at the moment. They had just realized that their worst enemy had a complete access to the pack, what with controlling one of their own, and a plan none of them had any idea about.

Stiles had gone to visit his dad in hospital once visiting hours had begun that morning. The man had woken up during the night and, as Melissa said, he had absolutely no idea of what had really happened the night before, only the consequences. He had also been briefed by one of his deputies, who hadn't been at the station at the moment of the attacks but called afterwards for the cleanup, that the camera recording had been tempered with. Unfortunately, the hacker hadn't left any trace, so they were unable to find him.

Unfortunately, it was enough to tell the Sheriff that there was someone pulling the strings behind the attacks of the beast. Now, Stiles could only hope that his father wouldn't have the idea to regroup this information with the observations he had made of Gerard's strange behavior.

The Sheriff had told Stiles not to worry about him, that he was perfectly fine and would be out of the hospital only a few hours later, then sent the boy to school. Stiles supposed that it was his father's way to protect him but, at the very last, it helped Stiles not to have to lie too much.

The pack had thought they would have some more time to think about what was going on and try to figure out what kind of plan was being put in motion by Gerard but, apparently, something had forced the man's hand to act sooner than expected. Stiles didn't know what it was exactly but, by the end of the school day, it began.

The whole pack was leaving school after their last class that day, when they witnessed Jackson being forced to change. Stiles had a second to be thankful that they had at least been somewhat removed from the school when it happened – they would have had a lot to explain if there had been any witness – then it was pandemonium.

Both Scott and Isaac wolfed out as the kanima seemed to have been ordered to attack them and four others were soon caught in the middle of the battle, trying their best not to get clawed or injected with the paralyzing agent of the kanima's bite. Unfortunately, in all this mayhem, no one noticed the black-clad man who approached them and knocked Stiles as soon as the boy caught sight of him, before he had time to call for help.

Everything went dark and when Stiles woke up, in what appeared to be the Argent's basement if he wasn't mistaking, his head hurting like crazy, he found himself unable to move and looked down to see he was tied up to a chair.

The very first thing he noticed after regaining consciousness, apart from his regrettable position, was that he wasn't alone. Boyd and Erica were also there, their wrists and ankles circled by sturdy-looking chains linked to both the ceiling and the floor. They looked as if they had been tortured and it worried Stiles. They may not have been Alphas, but even as betas they should have healed quicker than that. Then Stiles' attention was caught by the car battery that was attached to them with electrical cords and remembered that electricity stopped their healing powers.

It was the very same technique that Kate had employed on Derek and, suddenly, Stiles had the most sickening revelation that Gerard must have known about Kate's involvement in the Hale house-fire since the very beginning, that he had probably even encouraged her and was the one who had taught her to ignore the code.

Stiles frowned, wondering why he was still there. The rest of the pack must have noticed his absence by now. Scott and Isaac would have been able to subdue Jackson, especially considering Derek must have sensed something was wrong and joined them. Once the situation had been defused, they would have realized he was nowhere to be found and immediately worked out he would be at the Argent's house. Granted, they hadn't done that for Erica and Boyd but, as they had told Derek they were leaving, they had no reason to think of their disappearance as weird.

"Your pack has other things to worry about right now," a voice said, as if reading his mind, and Stiles immediately turned his attention to the basement door, seeing Gerard walk down the stair and noticing instantly the way the two betas stiffened. "I've been interrogating your two friends there for a while now but they seem pretty reluctant to talk – or maybe they just don't know the answers to my questions. It doesn't really matter anymore though."

"I won't tell you anything," Stiles spit out.

And he wouldn't. Or, at least, he hoped he would be strong enough not to tell him anything because he knew that everyone ended up talking under torture; everyone had a breaking point. He didn't know his limits yet but was probably about to find out.

"I don't need you to tell me anything, Stiles. You want to know why? Because you're not here because I need answer from you. You're here because you will be a message for your little friend, Scott. You see, he will be the one in charge of that group after I'm done with Derek Hale. And I need him to know not to cross me and that's where you come in."

Stiles swallowed because that was even worse. There wouldn't be any reason for Gerard to stop hurting him. Since he didn't want any answer, there was nothing Stiles could give him and that was why he braced himself when the first hit fell on him.

Suddenly all he knew was pain. He could do absolutely nothing to defend himself, tied up as he was, and he could only hear his scream and those of Erica and Boyd who were pleading with the man to stop hurting him because he wouldn't heal, his wounds would stay for a long time. He realized that Gerard may have been sending a message to Scott, he was also trying to make the other two talk.

Gerard stopped after a while, letting Stiles get his breath back. Everything hurt but he tried not to show it, even if all he wanted to do was curl up and cry. He knew he would have bruises all over his body and face. For an old man, Gerard was pretty strong.

"You see," the man continued talking and normally, Stiles would have already cut him off, babbling all along about the most inane things but he wasn't sure he could talk without breaking down and he wasn't going to give his captor the satisfaction. "Derek has already been captured by my men and brought to a… meeting place, shall we say and Jackson is keeping the others busy. Scott, Isaac – and good for you, I had almost thought he was a human pack member, are trying to stop him while he's leading them straight to their Alpha, where my men are waiting for them."

"Oh my god! Are you seriously trying to Hannibal lecture me," Stiles said, unable to contain himself any longer. "Don't you know that the villain who exposes his plan step by step always end up losing?"

"Who says I'm the villain of the story?"

Stiles looked at him as if he was crazy because, clearly, he had to be to seriously ask that question. He was absolutely batshit insane.

"You have three people chained up and tied down in your basement, for your particular enjoyment. I would say that makes you the villain."

Stiles was talking now, but he was also very worried to realize he was the only one. That Boyd stayed silence wasn't especially strange but Erica…. That was more concerning, as she wasn't the type to be quiet, not anymore.

Gerard, once again, appeared to read his mind.

"Oh, yes, they have a little bit of current running through them. Not enough to really hurt, mind you," he said. "It just feels a little uncomfortable but it does prevent the healing from kicking in. Ingenuous, isn't it?"

Stiles just wanted to throw up.

"Well, I should join the others," Gerard said. "I'll let you out when I come back. It will be a very good message for our little friend."

"Why?"

Stiles had to know. He just needed to know the reason he had been tied up and beaten, had to know why Gerard was going to kill Derek. There must be a reason, especially since he seemed to want to let Scott live, probably the rest of the pack too. It had to be more than Derek being a werewolf. It couldn't be him being an Alpha, as another one would be chose after Derek's death.

"Why what?"

"Why do you want to kill Derek?"

Gerard debated for a few more seconds before deciding it wouldn't hurt his plan. Stiles would find out soon enough anyway, the rest of the pack too, since dust would be settled and he would be in charge of the territory.

"He's the only one who can give me what I want."

After that last bit of information, he left and Stiles was left absolutely speechless. Something that only Derek could give him. Gerard wanted the bite but…. Why? He hated werewolves, why would he want to become one of them? Was there something the bite could give him that was worth becoming what he considered a monster? Powers? Abilities? No, it couldn't be it. Health?

It didn't matter in the end, though. He had to go help the others and, for that, he had to get himself free. As he was trying to work out how he could accomplish that, he realized he still have his cell phone in his back pocket. Stiles almost rolled his eyes at that. Of course, Gerard didn't think it would matter, because the pack was too busy and his dad was either still in hospital or occupied with the investigation. He didn't see Melissa as someone who could help but he appeared to have overlooked one other person he could contact.

The two werewolves probably realized what he was trying to achieve with all his moving around and Erica was able to overcome the pain long enough to talk to him.

"The pack won't be able to answer," she stated and she looked absolutely defeated.

Because, while Gerard had said he would set Stiles free, the girl had no illusion about the fate that awaited both Boyd and her as soon as the man was finished with his plan. There was no way he would let them go also. No, for them it would be death.

"I'm not calling the pack," Stiles said and, after a bit of contortionism, he was finally able to reach his phone.

It was difficult to maneuver the cell, with it being in his back, but regrettably, he knew that if he tried to bring his hands in front of him, he risked letting it drop and then there would be nothing more he could do. Thanks God, he had a good memory and was able to punch in the right number before calling. He put it on speakerphone and waited for an answer.

"Stiles? What's going on?"

Stiles had never been so happy to hear Chris' voice.

The basement!" he called out, hoping the man would hear him correctly. "Help!"

There was no answer on the other end of the line, however it was only a few seconds later that he heard the door slam open and all three teenagers lifted their eyes to see Chris run down the stairs. Good thing he had already been inside the house, it would have sucked if they had had to wait to be free.

Stiles saw the way the man blanched when he took in their positions and the wounds on all of their bodies. He seemed staggered, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Luckily, as a hunter, he had learnt to act through his shock so it only took him a fraction of second before his head was a back in the game and he was ready to help.

His first instinct was to go to Stiles, because he was the human one, the more vulnerable one, but, considering the situation, Stiles knew it would be a mistake. He was the one in better shape.

"Them first," he said even if he wanted to be free of his ropes more than anything else. "The electricity is still running."

"Shit!" Chris exclaimed before changing direction and running to the car batteries, cutting the alimentation summarily and wasting no time in getting the two wolves out of their chains.

They dropped on the ground in a heap and didn't move. Without the electricity running through their bodies, their wounds began to heal and Stiles couldn't help but envy them for a minute because he knew his own contusions would last for quite some time for his part. The downside of being human, unfortunately.

As soon as Erica and Boyd were free, Christ turned to him and kneeled behind the chair, untying the knots as quickly as he could manage. Stiles didn't waste any time before telling him all he knew about the situation because he knew he couldn't act alone and he was sure Chris would help, even if he hated making the man go against his own father more directly. No matter the relationship between them, they were still family and it was the second time Stiles told the man he had to take down someone from his own family. First Kate, no his father…. It really wasn't fair at all.

"Gerard has trapped Derek and the pack in a warehouse. He wants the bite," he explained quickly. "I'm not sure of the details, but the end game is to get Derek to bite him before killing him. He says other hunters are there and he controls the kanima so he's probably using him to make sure the rest of the pack either behaves or stays too busy to help. We have to stop him."

Stiles knew he was close to begging but they were his family, as much as his father was, and he didn't care what he had to do to save them. Finally, he felt the last of the ropes slipping away and Chris helped him get up, making sure he didn't sway on his feet.

"Come on," the man said before leading him towards the door. "Erica, Boyd, you're free to go."

Stiles wanted to check on them, really he did, but he had no time to lose and he had to help the pack. He didn't know whether or not they would stay in Beacon Hills, but it didn't matter right now. What mattered was to stop Gerard no matter what.

He followed Chris to his garage. Stiles went straight to the car, expecting the man to drive them there immediately but it appeared it was not the case as he saw him go in another direction.

"Chris, we need to go," he insisted, biting his lips because, if the hunter didn't want to help, there was nothing he could do.

"You want to go unarmed?" Chris asked pointedly and Stiles' jaw fell open.

The hunter wanted to give him a gun? That was certainly unexpected, if very welcome. At least, he would be able to defend himself because, right now, the only strategy he had envisaged was to slip in the middle of the fight and distract everyone in the hope it would push Gerard into making a mistake. Not the best plan ever.

Chris chose a gun, loaded with normal bullets, Stiles realized, and didn't take any wolfbane with him before giving it to him. His breathe caught. It proved that they were going there armed with the intention of shooting humans and not werewolves. Stiles knew it was a hell of a big deal, though he didn't comment on it as he watched Chris prepare his own weapon before motioning for Stiles to get in into the passenger side of his SUV.

"Are you going to be okay?" Chris asked and Stiles knew that he meant the wounds more than the situation because he would have been able to see the steel in his eyes.

Stiles nodded.

"Yep, I think it's going to be worse tomorrow," he said with a mirthless laugh. "I'm not sure what I'm going to tell to my dad."

That was going to be a problem. He supposed that he should invoke some kind of bullying but he couldn't blame people from school, because it meant that he should be able to recognize them, but he would think about it later.

"I'm sorry," the hunter said softly, guilt more than obvious in his voice. "I should have…"

"It's not your fault. You couldn't have known he would go after me," Stiles cut before he had time to finish.

"That wasn't what I meant."

"I know," Stiles admitted, looking down at his hand cradling the gun on his knees. "It's still not your fault."

Chris stayed silent for a while, driving in the direction of the industrial sector, studying Stiles from the corner of his eyes, trying to read whether or not he actually knew what he was saying, meant what he was saying and the only answer he could find was yes.

"I don't know why I'm surprised," he sighed with a strange laugh. "Okay, tell me everything you know about what's going on."

Stiles obliged, first by telling him exactly where they would be. Thanks to his dad's information, he had a pretty good idea of where that would be. Then he reported every word Gerard had uttered while he was bragging about his plan. The rest of the way was made in quietness.

Stiles longed to say something, break the silence, but what exactly could he say to the man who was probably going to end up helping them kill his father? There was nothing he could say to make the situation any better and Stiles knew it so, for once, he kept his mouth shut until they arrived in the vicinity of the warehouses.

Chris stopped the car, killing the engine, and got out, Stiles on his heel. They were talking, listening intently to any noise that could help them locate the pack. However, the werewolves must have heard them and recognized Stiles, because they suddenly head a howl, of that were usually uttered by wolves calling for their pack and they took off at a run in the direction it came from.

When they arrived just outside the warehouse, inside which they could hear voices, they tiptoed in, Stiles following Chris every moves, knowing he had more experience and not wanting to make a mistake that could cost someone their life. He followed Chris to a vantage point from where they could see everything.

Danny, Allison and Lydia were being held by three different hunters, appearing pissed off but otherwise unhurt. He guessed that, for now, they weren't deemed a menace and were just kept out of the way. The kanima was in the middle, keeping the werewolves at bay, separating them from the rest of the hunters but, looking at their faces, most of them didn't appreciate being that close to the creatures, even if he answered their boss' every orders.

Isaac and Scott had been separated from Derek and were kept at gunpoint. They were prevented to act for three reasons: the wolfbane bullets probably ensconced in the hunters' weapon, the kanima who would attack immediately and the risk of one of their human friends being used as leverage.

Considering Derek's impressive scowl, and the distaste of his half-wolfed out face, Gerard must have already told him he wanted the bite. Of course, Derek wasn't going to accept, Stiles told himself because, seriously, that would be fucked up.

"Come on now, Derek. It should be a very easy choice. All I ask of you is a little bite and all of your pack goes free. Don't tell me you would rather have them dead than me a werewolf. You don't seem to really mind giving it to a bunch of teenagers who have no idea what it really means."

Seriously, Stiles couldn't believe the man was still talking. How come he didn't have the intelligence to know that bragging was always the downfall on any villain. Hell, Stiles had even reminded him of it in his basement. He almost shook his head in despair but, at the moment, all that mattered was that they were going to save them.

"Stiles, try to aim for the legs if you can. I would rather we avoided as many deaths as possible. If we can take them out without killing them, it would be better. Aim at those who have the guns trained on Scott and Isaac, I'm going for those who are holding the other three."

Stiles thought it more effective to obey than pout about the fact that Chris had kept the most delicate shots for himself. Stiles knew it was better that way. He may have been good at target shooting but they were human lives in the game and he knew it wasn't the same. The adrenaline, the fear of shooting large, all of this could contribute at his missing his target. At least, that way, even if he touched Scott or Isaac by mistake, it wouldn't be fatal.

As they had heard them talking, even if they hadn't shown any reaction, the wolves were all ready for the rain of bullet and therefore not surprised when the shooting started, not making any move that could distract either Stiles or Chris. The hunters, however, were taken by surprise and soon, most of them were on the ground, nursing their wounds, unable to get up. They still had their guns in hand but, seeing their aggressor, they were somewhat hesitant. It just didn't feel right to shoot Gerard's own son and the human kid that was with him.

Gerard, on the other hand, didn't seem to have the same moral problem as he turned, without a moment of hesitation, his own gun onto Chris. Stiles gasped but it appeared that Chris had been expecting it because he was the first to fire, his bullet going straight through Gerard's heart. The old man fell down on the ground and all the other hunters dropped their weapons, kicking them away from themselves in surrender. Chris still kept his handgun trained on them.

"Get their weapons, Stiles," Chris ordered, not looking away for a single second and almost firing on reflex when the kanima sprinted by.

He was thankfully able to master the reflex and Jackson was left unharmed. However, without a master, he had no reason to stay in the warehouse and, after seeing him get away from them, Lydia found herself back in the fame.

"I need to go after him," she informed everyone around and Chris threw her his car keys, which she caught with a smile of thanks.

Danny was as invested in saving Jackson as she was so it didn't surprise anyone when he went with her. Isaac chose to accompany them, should they need someone with more than human strength and the others were left to deal with the fallout.

The hunters were summarily rounded up, those who were hurt relying on the others to walk, and told summarily to leave Beacon Hills and not to return. Needless to say, in face of the alliance of the pack and Chris, they didn't need to be told twice.

Derek was at Stiles' side before he had time to realize the Alpha was moving, inspecting his wounds and taking away some of his pain, much to the teenager's relief. Scott ran to Allison as she almost threw herself in his arms, crying softly, having thought she would have to watch her grandfather kill her boyfriend and all her friends. Chris was left standing in front of his father's body and Stiles felt his heart break a little for him.

Disentangling himself from Derek, but still keeping the Alpha's hand in his, forcing him to follow, he walked to Chris and put a hand on his shoulder. The hunter didn't turn to him but kept a steady voice.

"I need to take care of the body," he said. "We can't afford to have the police look into it."

"I'll help," Derek spoke up, much to the others' surprise but, Stiles mused, if someone knew what it meant to have to kill someone who was family, someone you used to love once upon a time, it would be the Alpha.

"Allison, Scott and I will take care of the rest, the shells and blood…"

Just like that, they knew what they had to do and braced themselves to do it. As Stiles and the other teens walked over, picking bullet shells wherever they could see them, hoping the cops wouldn't have been called, Stiles heard Derek tell Chris that Gerard was sick, terminal cancer, which was why he wanted to bite. Stiles couldn't find it in himself to be happy about being right concerning the man's motivation. It shouldn't have had to end in blood and body-bag.


	14. Epilogue

**Author's note**; Well, this is the end for this one. As I've stated, this is the first part of a four-part series so it doesn't end there. I haven't finished written the second one yet, but I've got my plan ready so it should be ready around the middle of May I believe, though I made no promise. I'll try. Thank you for following the story and leaving your comments...

Epilogue

Stiles couldn't feel his bruises as he was reclining in Derek's arms, the werewolf instinctively taking away his pain as much as he could, the same way he had been doing since that night. As the Sheriff had wanted to keep him close, even though he didn't know the truth and thought Stiles had fallen victim to a group of tugs from outside town, he was forced to spend most time at home. Derek hadn't wanted to stay away so most day, he lounged on Stiles' bed with him, ready to hide the moment the Sheriff stopped by the room.

Stiles was glad for the house-arrest, though, as it gave him and Derek the occasion to finally spend some time together with nothing to worry about, just enjoying their time together. Everything was once again alright in their little town and they intended to make the most of it while it lasted. It would probably pick back up soon and Stiles really wanted to enjoy his boyfriend.

"Stop thinking, Stiles," Derek mock-growled. "You're giving me a headache."

Stiles snorted as he cuddled closer to Derek, pillowing his head on the sculpted chest.

"You can't get a headache without wolfbane," he countered jokingly.

He felt Derek's hand on his arm and another wave of pain relief surged through him. This was a damn useful power, better than aspirin.

"There is nothing to worry about, try to let your brain rest for a change."

Stiles nodded. Yes, he knew he should but it was easier said than done. His brain never shut up, the disadvantage of his attention disorder. Still, it was better than before for his stress level and he was actually slowly getting more and more comfortable and at ease.

Derek's heartbeat was strong under his ear and, even against his will, he was gradually lulled into sleep, the fatigue he had accumulated during those long weeks of terrors finally having taken its toll on him. Eventually, Derek realized his boyfriend had fallen asleep and, confident he would be able to wake before the Sheriff came back, he let himself follow him.

* * *

The situation was far from being as peaceful at the Argent house, even as Scott and Allison were cuddling in their spot on the rooftop. While Allison stayed unaware of the disagreement going on inside, Scott could hear both her parents argue with each other, mostly about Allison's affiliation to the pack, but also their way of dealing with werewolves in general and the hunting life.

"Scott?" Allison asked, slightly puzzled by his far-away look.

"Sorry," he smiled at her. "I'm just very happy to be with you."

He couldn't tell her the truth, because he knew how much it hurt to have your parents at odd with each other. He knew, of course, that Allison was not oblivious to the tension in the house, but he didn't think she knew how bad it really was, as both Chris and Victoria did agree to shield her from their problems as much as they could, as would all good parents. Scott was fairly sure that if they knew he was there, they would have waited to have their argument but they both thought Allison was alone and asleep.

* * *

Jackson and Lydia were lounging in the young man's room. He was finally feeling at peace with himself and, while he knew it would take him some time to deal with the things he had done as the kanima, he knew he would be capable of it now that he had Lydia back in his life and was part of the pack. He finally had a place where he belonged, where he didn't think he had to be more than he was to be accepted.

Lydia could admit to herself she felt more at ease now that she had finally told Jackson that she loved him, no matter what had happened between them in the past. It had taken her way too long to admit it, both to herself and to him. She had known all along they were destined to be together again, but she hadn't felt ready and, maybe, if she had, she could have stopped some things from happening.

Still, she refused to feel guilty about it. Taking Jackson back before she had been ready may have stopped the problem for a time but, in the long run, it would probably have made things worse. She still smiled to herself as she felt Jackson, more attuned to her mood than ever, squeeze her against him, as if to prove to himself she was still there, real.

* * *

Danny had invited Isaac to come by to have dinner with his family and stay the night for a sleepover. He knew that all the others were staying with their significant others and he didn't want the other boy to feel left out, especially considering that while he wasn't beaten by his father anymore, the relationship between the two of them could hardly be deemed ideal, unlike Danny's rapport with his own parents, brother and sisters.

Isaac had come by shyly, but Danny's mother had immediately taken a shine to him and his sisters found him simply adorable. There was the obvious teasing from his older brother about Isaac being his boyfriend but, after Isaac had stammered his denial, they had all laughed it off and dinner had been agreeable, with Isaac way more at ease with a family than he had been in quite some time.

They had gone to Danny's room afterwards and were now playing video games, choosing to express their relief and the remnant of the stress they had been under by enacting some combat scene on screen rather than in real life.

* * *

Erica and Boyd hadn't gone very far yet. They had taken some time to heal from their wounds after having been released from the Argent's basement. They had taken refuge in the wood, far enough from Derek's place to be sure not to run into anyone from the pack they had chosen to abandon and were only now reaching the territory limits.

Regrettably, they weren't the only wolves to roam through the woods and they soon found themselves surrounded by a pack of beast with glowing red eyes. The betas' faces were soon adorned by a look of pure terror as they realized they had made a serious mistake in choosing to leave the Hale pack. If only if wasn't too late…


End file.
